Key Takeaways
- Microsoft has formed a new consumer AI department headed by former Inflection AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman.
- Meanwhile, the firm’s Windows and Device teams are being combined to create a better AI experience for users.
- Bing boss Mikhail Parakhin is exploring new roles as part of a managerial reshuffle.
In line with its increasingly AI-centric business strategy, Microsoft has pursued a corporate restructuring to make way for a new consumer AI division.
The new department will be led by Mustafa Suleyman, who joins Microsoft as part of a $650 deal with Inflection AI, which Suleyman co-founded in 2022. Meanwhile, some members of Microsoft’s senior leadership are set to depart, including CEO for Advertising and Web Services Mikhail Parakhin.
Microsoft AI Absorbes Inflection
Strictly speaking, Microsoft hasn’t fully bought out Inflection, which continues to exist on paper as an independent business. But with its CEO and most of its 70-strong workforce now transplanted to Microsoft AI, Inflection is arguably a separate entity in name only.
Suleyman will report directly to CEO Satya Nadella, overseeing a newly formed department handling the company’s consumer-facing AI products. These include Copilot, Bing and Edge.
With Windows 12 expected to ship in the second half of 2024, the new division will also collaborate closely with teams working on the operating system.
A preview version of co-pilot for Windows is currently being tested on Windows 11, but the next generation of the OS is set to integrate AI at a much deeper level.
Windows and Device Departments Brought Back Together
With Microsoft preparing to pack the next version of Windows with a host of powerful AI features, the restructuring will see the Windows and Device teams brought together in a single department.
“This will enable us to take a holistic approach to building silicon, systems, experiences, and devices that span Windows client and cloud for this AI era,” Rajesh Jha, Microsoft Executive Vice President for experiences and devices said in a company memo.
As part of the managerial shakeup, Pavan Davuluri has been named as the new combined division’s chief.
Mikhail Parakhin Exploring New Roles
By bringing together Windows and Device teams, Microsoft is returning to a previous form of organization. The 2 projects were managed side by side under Panos Panay until he left to head up Amazon Devices and Services last year.
Upon Panos’ departure, Davuluri took charge of Microsoft’s consumer hardware work while Parakhin took the lead on the software and web services side of things, including work on Bing Chat. While Davulari will now oversee development of Microsoft’s integrated hardware and software development, Parakhin has “decided to explore new roles,” The Verge reported on Monday, March 25.
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