3 takeaways from Microsoft Build 2018

Microsoft Build is the annual developer conference held by Microsoft Corp. Microsoft leaders showcased new technologies to help every developer be an AI developer, on Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365 and across any platform. Building for AI is more important to developers than ever, as technology continues to change the way people live and work every day, across the cloud and across edge devices.

A quick couple of things you need to know about this year’s event are listed below. In general, Microsoft Build 18 was not an edition where major announcements were made. Though it was an important moment where Microsoft confirmed their ambitions around three topics:

• Ubiquitous computing
• Artificial Intelligence
• Multi-sense, multi-device experiences

And the company indicated the significance of the ethical responsibility of tech companies and developers to handle all these new technologies with respect for everyone and with a sense of responsibility.

Alexa & Cortana, new friendships equals new opportunities.

“Hey, Alexa. What do you think about Cortana?"

“I like Cortana. We both have experience with light rings, although hers is more of a Halo.”

Alexa and Cortana like each other. The digital assistants of Amazon (Alexa) and Microsoft (Cortana) are going to collaborate to process voice commands even better. In the future you can ask both Alexa and Cortana about your schedule and grocery list.

AI everywhere, although this time we don’t predict it (pun intended).

We know it. Artificial Intelligence will be everywhere. You will still need to train Machine Learning models in Azure Cloud, but where they become relevant they will be applied to an Edge-device. Meaning that an application is no longer dependent from the cloud to apply the cognitive services. The partnership with DJI is one example. It allows drones to evaluate Machine Learning models during flight.

Timeline, Sets, Cortana and Adaptive Cards. Your UX will skyrocket, promised.

Every developer is a Microsoft 365 developer. Microsoft 365 is the collection of Windows + Office + EMS. New Windows 10 features bet on functionality in Microsoft Graph. And Timeline, Sets, a Phone app, Cortana and Adaptive cards will make your user experience even better with a more intuitive and personalized usage even on Android and iOS. The next iteration in Fluent Design will make sure it is a consistent, inclusive and pleasant feeling.

Over a 100 new features are available for building Chatbots and digital assistants based on the Microsoft Bot Framework. The Bot Builder SDK, the Emulator and LUIS got an upgrade and new tools like Conversation Learner and Personality Chat offer a valuable addition in order to make better conversational services by using Machine Learning.