Alice Chambers |
Microsoft has developed a new application platform called Azure AI Foundry to bridge the gap between artificial intelligence technologies and practical business applications.
Azure AI Foundry – which was announced at Microsoft Ignite in Chicago, USA – is designed for developers to explore, build, test and deploy applications using AI tools and machine learning models. It facilitates the full lifecycle of app development from proof of concepts to long-term deployment.
Azure AI Foundry provides developers with the tools they need to create apps with generative AI
“Azure AI Foundry is designed to empower your entire organisation – developers, AI engineers, and IT professionals – to customise, host, run and manage AI solutions with greater ease and confidence,” said Jessica Hawk, corporate vice president of data, AI, digital applications and product marketing at Microsoft in a blog post titled ‘The next wave of Azure innovation’. “This unified approach simplifies the development and management process, helping all stakeholders focus on driving innovation and achieving strategic goals.”
Developers will be able to access all existing Azure AI Services with Azure AI Foundry, while IT professionals and business leaders can use the AI tools to measure return on investment from AI initiatives.
Azure AI capabilities will be accessible from familiar tools like GitHub, Visual Studio and Copilot Studio via the Azure AI Foundry software development kit, which provides a simplified coding experience for developers to integrate components together to build AI applications.
Microsoft has also revealed additional updates to enhance the overall experience and efficiency throughout the AI development process including Azure AI Agent Service, which supports developers with deploying AI-powered apps by connecting to enterprise data; a new management centre experience in the Azure AI Foundry portal, which brings subscription information into one pane of glass to save development teams time; and expansions to its AI model catalogue with more specialised solutions and customisation options.
“It’s not just about providing advanced tools, though we have those, too,” said Hawk. “It’s about fostering collaboration and alignment between technical teams and business strategy.”
Discover more news from the event on our dedicated Microsoft Ignite page