Microsoft establishes AI lab

Microsoft Research AI will be based at its Redmond, Washington headquarters and led by Eric Horvitz with a more than 100 scientists involved.

It will combine machine learning with innovation in language and dialogue and human interaction. The company said it would focus on the basic principles of intelligence, including efforts to unravel the mysteries of human intellect, and use this knowledge to develop a more general, flexible AI – as opposed to more task-specific AI.

Microsoft Research AI will compete with others already in this market such as DeepMind and Google Brain, both owned by Alphabet.