Vodafone and Microsoft
Corp. have partnered to bring generative AI, digital services and the cloud to
more than 300 million businesses, public sector organizations, and consumers
across Europe and Africa.
The 10-year signed
partnership deal will witness the two companies collaborate to transform
Vodafone’s customer experience using Microsoft’s generative AI, hyperscale
Vodafone’s leading managed IoT connectivity platform, develop new digital and
financial services for businesses, particularly SMEs across Europe and Africa,
and overhaul its global data centre cloud strategy.
According to a
statement released on Tuesday, Vodafone will invest $1.5 billion over the next
10 years in cloud and customer-focused AI services developed in conjunction
with Microsoft. Additionally, Microsoft will use Vodafone’s fixed and mobile
connectivity services.
In turn, Microsoft also
intends to invest in Vodafone’s managed IoT connectivity platform, which will
become a separate, standalone business by April 2024. The new company will
attract new partners and customers, driving growth in applications and
expanding the platform to connect more devices, vehicles, and machines.
The digital services
generated by the new partnership will use the latest generative AI technology
to provide a highly personalised and differentiated customer experience across
multiple channels. They will be built on unbiased and ethical privacy and
security policies under Vodafone’s established framework for responsible AI.
Margherita Della
Valle, Vodafone Group chief executive, said: “Today, Vodafone has made a bold commitment to the digital future of
Europe and Africa. This unique strategic partnership with Microsoft will
accelerate the digital transformation of our business customers, particularly
small and medium-sized companies, and step up the quality of customer
experience for consumers.”
“This new generation of AI will unlock massive
new opportunities for every organisation and every industry around the world,” said Satya Nadella,
chairman and CEO, Microsoft. “We are
delighted that together with Vodafone we will apply the latest cloud and AI
technology to enhance the customer experience of hundreds of millions of people
and businesses across Africa and Europe, build new products and services, and
accelerate the company’s transition to the cloud.”
By: Nana Appiah Acquaye