Microsoft 2.5: Superintelligence leader Ali Farhadi points company toward AI self-sufficiency

GeekWire has published a profile of Ali Farhadi, who leads Microsoft's Superintelligence team within Microsoft AI (MAI). According to the article, the team is focused almost entirely on building Microsoft's own frontier-level models, a direction the piece describes as pointing Microsoft toward AI self-sufficiency. Farhadi, identified as the Superintelligence leader, outlined his perspective on the company's position in a LinkedIn post.

In that post, Farhadi wrote that Microsoft has all the pieces needed to win in the AI race, including data, search, coding, infrastructure, agents, software, and Fortune 500 companies taking dependencies on Microsoft. The GeekWire profile uses the phrase "Microsoft 2.5" in its title to characterize this phase of the company's strategy. The article presents Farhadi's statements as evidence of Microsoft's increasing focus on developing frontier AI capabilities internally.

The profile indicates that Microsoft is seeking to reduce its reliance on external sources for its most advanced AI models. Farhadi's list of advantages emphasizes Microsoft's diversified portfolio of assets and its existing enterprise customers. The article does not include specific performance benchmarks or timelines for the Superintelligence team's work.