Microsoft
Microsoft creates platforms and tools powered by AI to deliver innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of customers. The company's mission is to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more.
Founding Story
Childhood friends Bill Gates and Paul Allen first met at Lakeside School in Seattle and founded Traf-O-Data in 1972. In 1975, inspired by the Altair 8800 microcomputer featured in Popular Electronics, they developed a BASIC interpreter for the device. After a successful demonstration to MITS in Albuquerque, MITS agreed to distribute the software as Altair BASIC. Gates and Allen formed Microsoft on April 4, 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico to market BASIC interpreters for microcomputers, with Allen suggesting the name 'Microsoft' as a portmanteau of micro-computer and software.
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Leadership
Founders
Bill Gates
William Henry Gates III attended Lakeside School and later Harvard University (where he took Math 55 and graduate-level computer science courses before dropping out in 1975). Before founding Microsoft, he co-founded Lakeside Programmers Club, automated Lakeside School's class-scheduling system, served as a congressional page in the House of Representatives (1972), co-founded Traf-O-Data at age 17, and worked at Honeywell during summer 1974. He developed an intense interest in computer programming at Lakeside School and engaged in several early software ventures before leaving Harvard to capitalize on the emerging microcomputer revolution.
Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen attended Lakeside School (1965-1971) and later Washington State University (member of Phi Kappa Theta fraternity) before dropping out after two years. He achieved a perfect SAT score of 1600. Before Microsoft, he co-founded the Lakeside Programming Club, co-founded Traf-O-Data with Bill Gates in 1972 to create traffic counters based on the Intel 8008 processor, and worked as a computer programmer for Honeywell in Boston. Born in Seattle to a librarian and a teacher, he developed a passion for computers at Lakeside School alongside Bill Gates.
Executive Team
Satya Nadella
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Formerly led Cloud and Enterprise division before becoming CEO in 2014; elected Chairman in 2021
Brad Smith
Vice Chair and President
Business Model
Revenue Model
Technology conglomerate generating revenue through software licensing (Windows, Office), cloud-based subscriptions (SaaS/IaaS via Azure and Microsoft 365), hardware sales (Surface, Xbox), professional social networking (LinkedIn), gaming content and services (Xbox Game Pass), search advertising (Bing), and enterprise applications (Dynamics 365). Uses pay-as-you-go, subscription-based, and licensing models.
Pricing Tiers
For one person; use on up to 5 devices; 1 TB cloud storage; includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Defender, Copilot features
For 1-6 people; each person can use up to 5 devices; up to 6 TB cloud storage (1 TB per person); all Personal features
For 1-6 people; all Family features plus extensive usage limits for select Copilot features and exclusive Premium Copilot features
For frontline workers; web and mobile Office apps; 2 GB cloud storage; Teams; custom apps; enhanced security
Identity and access management; desktop/web/mobile Office apps; Teams; 1-5+ TB cloud storage per user; Windows for Enterprise; antivirus; endpoint management
All E3 features plus advanced identity/security, Teams Phone, Power BI Pro, XDR, email/collaboration security, ITDR, endpoint detection
Standard consumption-based tier for cloud resources; pay only for what you use
Reserve resources for 1 or 3 years for consistent usage
Flexible savings plan for select compute services
Target Markets
- Individual consumers
- Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs)
- Large enterprises and Fortune 500 companies
- Government agencies (including military and intelligence)
- Educational institutions (K-8 classrooms, universities)
- Healthcare organizations
- Enterprise productivity and collaboration
- Cloud infrastructure and application hosting
- AI and machine learning development and deployment
- Software development and DevOps
- Business intelligence and analytics
- Customer relationship management (CRM)
- Nearly 70% of the Fortune 500 use Microsoft 365 Copilot
- More than 85% of the Fortune 500 use Microsoft AI
- Disney
- Dow
History & Milestones
Celebrated 50th anniversary
Became the most valued publicly traded company
Completed Activision Blizzard acquisition; multi-billion dollar investment in OpenAI; reinvented search with AI-powered Bing and Edge
Acquired Nuance
Valuation reached $2 trillion; released Windows 11; acquired ZeniMax Media; Satya Nadella elected Chairman and CEO
5 AI Tools by Microsoft
An open-source SDK from Microsoft that integrates large language models with conventional programming languages for AI application development.
Advanced development version of VS Code featuring cutting-edge AI capabilities, including Agent mode, Edit mode, and support for the latest language models
VS Code
7moVS Code is a lightweight, powerful code editor with extensive language support, debugging capabilities, and a rich ecosystem of extensions including AI tools.
Experimental VS Code feature that provides intelligent code completion suggestions in the integrated terminal for PowerShell commands.
Microsoft's comprehensive suite of AI services including computer vision, speech, language, search, and Azure OpenAI for building intelligent applications.
