Microsoft takes on Google & Apple: Cortana to get smarter with the acquisition of Maluuba

Global tech giant Microsoft has acquired a Canada-based startup Maluuba with an aim to add to the wonderful things that the company has been doing in the area of artificial intelligence and deep machine learning. Maluuba is a company based in Montreal and in known for their research work in deep learning and reinforcement learning. This move by the company will increasingly important for consumers and developers alike. Microsoft in its blog wrote: “We’ve recently set new milestones for speech and image recognition using deep learning techniques, and with this acquisition we are, as Wayne Gretzky would say, skating to where the puck will be next — machine reading and writing.”

Ever since Microsoft, opened its Artificial Intelligence and Research organisation, it has been trying to bring engineers and researchers closer, which will eventually result in amazing products which are something the company has been known for. Both Microsoft and Maluuba have been making efforts to improve machine learning and AI. They have made data sets regarding reading and conversations, available.

Sam Pasupalak and Kaheer Suleman are the founders of Maluuba and are well known in the field of machine learning research. Additionally, another great Yoshua Bengio who is an advisor to Maluuba will now join Microsoft. According to Microsoft, Maluuba’s expertise in the field will help it to advance their ‘strategy to democratise AI’.

Microsoft also gave some examples in its blog which is written by Harry Shum, EVP of Microsoft’s AI and Research organisation, regarding how the AI systems will behave in the future and how they will help humans. According to Microsoft, both the companies have similar visions towards AI research.

Explaining how Maluuba and Microsoft fit well together, the former in its blog wrote: “Their ambitious vision of democratising AI to empower every person and every organisation on the planet fundamentally aligns with how we see our technology being used. Microsoft provides us with the opportunity to deliver our work to the billions of consumer and enterprise users that can benefit from the advent of truly intelligent machines.”

Meanwhile, there is still no disclosure by any of the companies on how much it cost Microsoft for the acquisition.

Microsoft India (R&D) Pvt. Ltd.