Microsoft CEO: A ‘public cloud for the public good’
Hardware and software giant Microsoft plans to donate $1 billion in cloud computing resources and services to nonprofits, CEO Satya Nadella said in a company blog post.
From the post: “We will donate $1 billion in cloud computing resources over the next 3 years to 70,000 non-profits and NGOs worldwide.” Nadella dubbed the effort “a public cloud for the public good.”
“The ‘public cloud’ refers to massive, privacy-protected data and storage services rendered over a network for public use. Cloud computing makes it possible to reason over quantities of data to produce specific insights and intelligence. It converts guesswork and speculation into predictive and analytical power. Last fall, world leaders at the United Nations adopted 17 sustainable development goals to tackle some of the toughest global problems by 2030, including poverty, hunger, health and education. A careful read of those goals reveals the central role that data and cloud computing must play for analysis and action.”
Nadella also referenced the ongoing World Economic Forum, which draws leaders from government and industry together in Davos, Switzerland. The theme of the program this year is the fourth Industrial Revolution, which he described as “a digital transformation brought about by ubiquitous, powerful, mobile and networked technologies.”
“Among the questions being asked in Davos are these: If cloud computing is one of the most important transformations of our time, how do we ensure that its benefits are universally accessible? What if only wealthy societies have access to the data, intelligence, analytics and insights that come from the power of mobile and cloud computing? Governments are searching for a coherent, pro-cloud policy framework. I believe there are four elements – infrastructure, next generation skills development, trusted computing and leadership.”
Nadella concluded: “Philanthropy is a start, but to truly harness the public cloud for public good, businesses, governments and NGOs must come together with a shared vision and relentless passion to improve the human condition and drive new growth equally.”
