Microsoft Research Stories
Emerging technology is propelled by great ideas, but transforming research ideas into meaningful impact is no small feat. These stories are deeper explorations of the research journey at Microsoft, including the beliefs and experiences that animate our research, our diverse range of collaborators, and the positive human impact we target with our work. We share the expected—and unexpected—experiences behind the projects, products, and services being pursued and delivered by researchers at Microsoft.
Research at Microsoft
Advancing AI for the physical world
Rho-alpha, which translates natural language commands into control signals for robotic systems doing bimanual manipulation tasks, aims to make physical systems more adaptable by using physical sensing modalities like touch and continuous learning from human feedback.
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Research at MicrosoftMicrosoft Research 2025: A year in review
December 19, 2025
From AI-driven material discovery and protein modeling to agentic systems, gaming, and multilingual AI for the global majority, 2025 turned research into real-world impact. Explore the breakthroughs in Microsoft Research’s Year in Review.
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Societal Impact3D Telecommunications goes open source
December 17, 2025
Holoportation™ technology, enabling real-time 3D telecommunications, has evolved from the lab to real-world use. After a decade of refinement and real-world deployment, it’s been released via open source license to encourage wider use and development.
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Field NotesWhat’s next in AI?
December 12, 2025
What’s next in AI for 2026? Microsoft researchers share what they expect, from adaptive robotics to agent‑native economies. Explore the areas of innovation set to define the next chapter.
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Societal ImpactAdvancing AI to meet needs of the global majority
November 12, 2025
AI tools can perform poorly in non-Western languages and lack critical cultural context for many populations. Project Gecko uses small language models to bring vital expertise to farmers in underserved areas using local languages and multi-modal content.
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AI for HealthcareThe Paraphrase Project: Designing defense for an era of synthetic biology
October 6, 2025
In the fall of 2023, breakthroughs in generative AI had researchers proclaiming a new era for medicine and healthcare.
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Societal ImpactHow ASHABot empowers rural India’s frontline health workers
June 24, 2025
From childbirth to chronic disease, India’s rural healthcare workers face it all. Now, they have a tool that listens—and answers—in the languages they use every day.
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Podcast SeriesAI Testing and Evaluation: Learnings from Science and Industry
June 23, 2025
Discover how Microsoft is learning from other domains to advance evaluation and testing as a pillar of AI governance.
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Podcast SeriesThe AI Revolution in Medicine, Revisited
March 20, 2025
Join Microsoft’s Peter Lee on a journey to discover how AI is impacting healthcare and what it means for the future of medicine.
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AI For ScienceAI meets materials discovery
January 16, 2025
Researchers pull back the curtain on MatterGen and MatterSim, the cutting-edge tools reshaping how we design and innovate advanced materials. Explore the journey from concept to creation driving these AI-powered technologies.
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Research at MicrosoftMicrosoft Research 2024: A year in review
December 20, 2024
Microsoft Research did extraordinary work this year, using AI and scientific research to make progress on real-world challenges like climate change, food security, global health, and human trafficking. Learn more.
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Societal ImpactFind My Things: New teachable AI tool helps blind and low-vision people locate lost personal items
October 24, 2024
Teachable AI is personalizing accessibility for people with disabilities, giving them the power to train AI-based tools and apps to provide help in their daily lives. Find My Things, available with the Seeing AI app, is a great example.
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