Microsoft's latest partnership is set to give its AI workloads a major boost

In a bid to bolster its AI infrastructure, Microsoft has announced a new strategic partnership with Lumen Technologies.

For Lumen, the partnership means it will get to use Microsoft Cloud to drive its digital transformation, while Microsoft will use the telecomms company to expand its network capacity and capability to meet the growing needs of its AI datacenters.

Lumen’s Privacy Connectivity Fabric will play a crucial role in the upgrade, including its extensive fiber network and the installation of new fiber routes.

Microsoft and Lumen deal

With Lumen’s AI-ready infrastructure, Microsoft will get access to the necessary network capacity, performance and speed it needs to strengthen connectivity between its datacenters.

On the flip side, Lumen will use Microsoft Cloud to reduce IT costs, remove legacy systems and silos, and create new solutions as part of its enterprise-wide simplification and transformation efforts.

Microsoft Corporate VP for Azure Core Product and Design Erin Chapple commented on the deal: “Lumen has the network infrastructure and the digital capabilities needed to help support Azure’s mission in creating reliable and scalable platform that supports the breadth of customer workloads—from general purpose and mission-critical, to cloud-native, high-performance computing, and AI, plus what’s on the horizon.”

Kate Johnson, President and CEO for Lumen Technologies, added: “Lumen’s expansive network meets this challenge, with unique routes, unmatched coverage, and a digital platform built to give companies the flexibility, access and security they need to create an AI-enabled world.”

By combining Microsoft’s advanced AI experience with Lumen’s extensive networking infrastructure, the partnership is hoped to bring a handy boost across AI workloads by meeting the growing demand for high-power, high-performance datacenters.

More from TechRadar Pro

• These are the best AI tools and best AI writers
• Check out all the best cloud hosting providers
• Microsoft is investing billions into another major US AI data center — and its location is a slap in the face to Apple