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☆ House committee asks Microsoft's Brad Smith to attend hearing on security lapses
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-10 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft, speaks at Gateway Technical College in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, on May 8, 2024. A House committee wants Microsoft 's top lawyer, Brad Smith, to attend a hearing this month on exploits of the company's software that resulted in hackers obtaining U.S. government officials' emails. A proposed hearing before the House Committee on Homeland Security, at 10 a.m. But Smith might not necessarily show up at the time the committee asked about in a letter it sent him on Thursday. Committee chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn., and Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in their letter inviting Smith to the hearing that they were encouraged by the company's plans to overhaul its security practices.

Persons: Brad Smith, Gina Raimondo, Don Bacon, Nicholas Burns, Smith, We're, Satya Nadella, Charlie Bell, Mark Green, Bennie Thompson, Green, Thompson, Chris Krebs Organizations: Microsoft, Gateway Technical College, Homeland Security, Rep, CNBC Locations: Sturtevant , Wisconsin, Washington, U.S, China

☆ Bill Gates Is Still Pulling Strings at Microsoft, Overseeing AI Ideas
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

In fact, Business Insider has learned, Gates has been quietly orchestrating much of Microsoft's AI revolution from behind the scenes. The company, Nadella promised, would "continue to benefit from Bill's ongoing technical passion and advice to drive our products and services forward." According to two executives, Gates' memo treated as gospel, sparking Microsoft's push to take the lead in the AI arms race. Now, it seemed, OpenAI might offer Microsoft a way to help forge the AI future that Gates had long envisioned. According to two executives, Gates' words were treated as gospel, helping spark Microsoft's push to take the lead in the AI arms race.

Persons: Bill Gates, Satya Nadella, Gates, Siri, They're, Clippy, Copilot, That's, Sam Altman, — Gates, Satya, Nadella, Steve Ballmer, Peter Thiel bashed, Bill, Melinda, Jeffrey Epstein, Nadella's, Rather, OpenAI, Kevin Scott, Scott, Altman, you'll, OpenAI's, Bing —, Bing, Steve, Sam, Kayla Wood, Frank Shaw, Shaw, —, Charles Lamanna, Jaime Teevan, Jeff Teper, Charlie Bell —, He's, Forbes, Mustafa Suleyman, DeepMind, Bill G, Suleyman, aren't, hadn't, there's, Ashley Stewart Organizations: Microsoft, Agents, Business, Google, Wired, Street Journal, Rover, Steve Jobs, OpenAI, Amazon Web Services Locations: Tay, Gates, Clippy, Washington, Redmond , Washington, Seattle

☆ Internal Microsoft email shows a shakeup in Charlie Bell's security organization
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Microsoft named a new chief information security officer, according to an internal email. Igor Tsyganskiy, Bridgewater's former chief technology officer, will take on the role Jan. 1. The move suggests Microsoft and Bell want to shake up the CISO role and strategy, one insider said. Microsoft's security boss Charlie Bell, in an internal email to employees Tuesday, named a new chief information security officer and announced new roles for the current CISO and deputy CISO, the latter of which will be leaving the organization. Igor Tsyganskiy, the former Bridgewater chief technology officer who recently joined Microsoft, will become the company's new CISO on January 1.

Persons: Igor Tsyganskiy, Bell, Charlie Bell, CISO Organizations: Microsoft, Bridgewater, Security, Business

☆ AWS VP tells employees that the departures of senior engineers are 'making us better,' leaked transcript shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some Amazon Web Services employees are concerned about a large number of departures among its senior engineers. At last month's internal staff meeting for AWS, VP of infrastructure services Prasad Kalyanaraman answered an employee question about turnover among senior engineers, according to a transcript of the meeting obtained by Business Insider. It is one of the many challenges AWS employees are currently dealing with, alongside slowing growth and a more bureaucratic culture, as BI previously reported . As we've previously told Insider, attrition among AWS employees has declined in recent years and to suggest anything otherwise is inaccurate. Amazon unveiled Amazon Q this week, an AI chatbot for businesses, and previously launched CodeWhisperer, a coding assistant for developers.

Persons: Prasad Kalyanaraman, Kalyanaraman, Rob Munoz, we've, Prasad, Munoz, Peter DeSantis, DeSantis, Charlie Bell, Rachel Thornton, Chris Vonderhaar Organizations: Web Services, Business, Amazon's, AWS

☆ AI fatigue, sales challenges, and the problem of getting big: Inside growing tension at AWS
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

For Amazon, AWS is more important than ever. Targets missedAWS is falling short of reaching sales goals in its startups and small-business segments, two employees told BI. Burnout and attritionSeveral AWS employees also pointed to high turnover as a major point of concern. AWS employees told BI it still remains to be seen how all these changes will manifest in the months to come. "The most significant single sentiment we feel is uncertainty," one of the AWS employees told BI.

Persons: Matt Garman, Garman, Mark Shmulik, Bernstein, Rob Munoz, Munoz, Charlie Bell, Rachel Thornton, Chris Vonderhaar, Peter DeSantis, DeSantis, Andy Jassy Mike Blake, AWS's, Prasad Kalyanaraman, Kalyanaraman, Amazon's, Bard, Adam Selipsky, Adam Selipsky Noah Berger, Selipsky, Andy Jassy, Jeff Bezos, Jassy, Geekwire Organizations: Amazon Web, AWS, Business, Amazon, SMB, Enterprise, Reuters, Microsoft, Google, BI Locations: Las Vegas, AMZN's, billings

☆ 'The most taboo topic I've ever seen': Inside Microsoft's war over the war in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

Viva Engage, Microsoft's slick message board designed to compete with Slack, is often touted as "Facebook for work." In October, according to internal messages viewed by BI, a Microsoft employee shared a post praising child tax credits as a way to reduce poverty. Employees with pro-Palestinian views have also used inflammatory language in their posts on Viva Engage. It has cut off the comments to Viva Engage posts it considered too incendiary. "It's important to recognize the pain and suffering of so many people, including our colleagues, as the events in Israel, Gaza, and the surrounding region continue to unfold," Nadella wrote.

Persons: Slack, —, Sandy Hook, chimed, George Floyd, Satya Nadella, Roe, Wade, Kathleen Hogan, Israel, Nadella, Benjamin Netanyahu, Charlie Bell, Scott Guthrie, Rajesh Jha, Microsoft's, Cherry, Davis Polk, Israel's, Ashley Stewart Organizations: Viva Engage, Facebook, Microsoft, Business, Engage, BI, Employees, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, Harvard, Hamas, Wardwell, Ivy League, New York Times, Apple, Amazon Web Services Locations: Israel, Gaza, Uvalde, Columbia, Silicon Valley, America, Haifa, Herzliya , Tel Aviv, Nazareth, Palestine, Gaza . Harvard, Tel Aviv, Seattle

☆ Microsoft Windows boss Panos Panay left for Amazon after cuts and canceled products in his unit, insiders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Microsoft Chief Product Officer Panos Panay is leaving for Amazon after the company made budget and staff cuts, canceled products in his division, and amid discussions about a reorganization in his unit, insiders say. Microsoft, Panay, and Amazon did not comment. During nearly 20 years at Microsoft, Panay was notably in charge of the team that developed the Surface hardware business. Windows licensing and the unit's hardware underperformed relative to the company's financial projections, insiders say, and Microsoft responded by dramatically scaling back Panay's division. At Microsoft, insiders say Panay was known as a demanding leader and expected "white glove service" on everything, meaning a premium experience with extra care and attention to detail.

Persons: Panos Panay, Dave Limp, Alexa, Kristy Schmidt, Charlie Bell, Rajesh Jha, Satya Nadella, Microsoft's Organizations: Microsoft, Amazon, Bloomberg, Reuters Locations: Panay, New York

☆ Bridgewater's tech chief is leaving the hedge fund giant for Microsoft to focus on the 'relentless tide of cyber threats'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Bianca Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

He told Insider he's making the move to help combat cybersecurity on a broader scale. Igor Tsyganskiy, chief technology officer and president, is leaving the world's largest hedge fund after seven years, Insider has learned. Prior to Bridgewater, Tsyganskiy ran database.com, a division of Salesforce.com, and was the cofounder of Tealeaf Technologies, which was sold to IBM. Bell recently told Insider that AI would give Microsoft the upper hand to "finally turn the tables on the attackers." "Basically, end-to-end strategy on how Microsoft approaches the cybersecurity sector is my job," Tsyganskiy told Insider.

Persons: Igor Tsyganskiy, Tsyganskiy, Greg Jensen, Bridgewater's, Oliver Radwan, Kevin Brennan, Ray Dalio, Nir Bar Dea, Bridgewater, Charlie Bell, Bell Organizations: Bridgewater, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Tealeaf Technologies, IBM, Web Services Locations: Bridgewater, Bay Area, Connecticut, Westport , Connecticut, Salesforce.com

☆ Biden admin believes hack gave China insights into US thinking ahead of Blinken’s crucial Beijing visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Kylie Atwood | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The hack – which Microsoft said was launched in mid-May – was discovered by the State Department right around the time of Blinken’s visit to Beijing, officials said. Still, it provided the Chinese government with additional knowledge from the private discussions of US officials heading into Blinken’s visit. Another target of the hack, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is also expected to soon visit China. Blinken “raised” the issue of the hack in a meeting with top Chinese official Wang Yi in Indonesia on Thursday, a senior State Department official said. On Wednesday State Department Spokesperson Matt Miller said that the department had “detected anomalous activity” in June.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, Antony Blinken’s, –, Edward Snowden, Charlie Bell, Blinken, Gina Raimondo, Blinken “, Wang Yi, “, Wang, Matt Miller, ” Miller Organizations: CNN, State Department, Microsoft, FBI, National Security Agency, NSA, The State Department, Wednesday State Locations: Beijing, China, Blinken’s, Indonesia

☆ Microsoft discovered US state department emails were being hacked by China — and the investigation began the same day Blinken visited Beijing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

It started investigating on June 16, the same day Secretary of State Blinken traveled to China. In a Wednesday press briefing, the US State Department would not confirm who was behind the attacks. Bell said in his blog that Microsoft's investigation found that the hacks traced back approximately a month before June 16. In a statement to Insider, the State Department said it immediately took steps to secure its systems after detecting anomalous activity. The State Department's investigation into the hack is ongoing, Miller added.

Persons: it'd, Blinken, Antony Blinken, Charlie Bell, —, Bell, Matthew Miller, Miller, We've Organizations: Microsoft, US State Department, Service, Blinken's, The New York Times, State Department, Department Locations: China, Wall, Silicon, Beijing, Russia, Ukraine, PRC, People's Republic of China, Storm

☆ Microsoft's cloud boss faces tough questions about pay and low morale, leaked messages show
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Employees blasted Microsoft's decision to pause raises and low morale ahead of a cloud meeting. Cloud boss Scott Guthrie told employees at the previous meeting no changes would come to raises. Microsoft cloud boss Scott Guthrie is facing tough questions about the company's decision to pause raises and cut bonuses and stock awards ahead of an employee meeting for the Cloud + AI organization. Many of the questions ahead of Guthrie's latest meeting, initially scheduled for June 8 and then canceled, were directed at Microsoft's senior leadership team, internally abbreviated as LT or SLT. Are you a Microsoft employee or do you have insight to share?

Persons: Scott Guthrie, Guthrie, Satya Nadella, Will LT, Kathleen Hogan, Charlie Bell, Ashley Stewart Organizations: Microsoft, Microsoft's

☆ Leaked Microsoft messages show employees blasting pay cuts and low morale to executives
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Some Microsoft employees have criticized the company's decision to halt raises and cut bonus and stock awards, according to internal messages viewed by Insider that were directed at executives. A later email from Microsoft's chief people officer, Kathleen Hogan, which was viewed by Insider, instructed managers to give fewer employees "exceptional rewards." While the comments may not reflect the feelings of all employees at Microsoft, they provide a window into employee sentiment over these changes. On the all-hands call, Bell said: "Merit increases and employee pay are supply and demand-driven, and for years we have enjoyed bigger paychecks than our peers in other sectors." Are you a Microsoft employee or do you have insight to share?

Persons: Satya Nadella, Kathleen Hogan, Hogan, Nadella, Charlie Bell, We've, LT, Bell, Ashley Stewart Organizations: Microsoft, Employees

☆ Interview: Amazon Web Services cofounder Charlie Bell dishes on why he moved to Microsoft, how he met Satya Nadella, and if he'll ever work on Azure
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Amazon Web Services cofounder Charlie Bell left in 2021 for a job at Microsoft. Many in the industry, including current and former Microsoft and Amazon executives, wonder whether there's a better job for Bell. In a rare interview with Insider, Bell discussed why he left Amazon, how he met Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and whether he'll ever work on Azure. Wind the clock back to January of 2021, Jeff (Bezos) came to us and said, "Hey, I'm going to retire." The more I thought about it, the more I thought, "Well, Microsoft might be the place to do it."

☆ 10 Things in Tech: AI-generated Drake songs, discounted startups, and Amazon’s upgraded Alexa
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

I'm Diamond Naga Siu, and in this turbulent economy, I definitely want stability over most other things. And my colleague Grace Mayer highlights how retail, finance, and other (seemingly more stable) industries are piquing our interest instead. A leaked document viewed by Insider revealed that Amazon wants to focus on entertainment features for Alexa. The upgrade will feature Amazon's own generative AI technology instead of using OpenAI's technology (like how Microsoft paired ChatGPT with Bing). Bell dished to my colleague Ashley Stewart on why he made the move, how he met Satya Nadella, and more.

☆ At Microsoft, Charlie Bell's shackles are finally off. Watch out, Amazon.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

Many in the industry, including current and former Microsoft and Amazon executives, wonder whether there's a better job for Bell. It could get intense, with Bell going toe-to-toe with Jassy and getting into disputes with Selipsky. "There were two different sets of security products and actually different security organizations that were securing the products for Microsoft," Bell said. While Bell has imported some processes from Amazon, he has introduced them with a "Microsoft flavor," by using Microsoft productivity tools, one person said. "So many decisions get made at Microsoft by looking at PowerPoints, and sometimes those PowerPoints lack details," Rashid, the former Microsoft and Amazon executive, said.

☆ 10 Things in Tech: Charlie Bell speaks, Amazon RTO, and the lucrative side of teaching ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amazon needs to watch out for Charlie Bell. A founder of Amazon Web Services and the firm's "best person in the room," Bell shook the industry last September when he joined Microsoft. Bell will be overseeing a new cybersecurity division at Microsoft — but insiders at both Amazon and Microsoft wonder if he'll go more directly up against his former employer. My colleague Ashley Stewart examines the growing threat of Microsoft now that Bell is free from his noncompete purgatory. Look into the future here for Bell — and Microsoft — without Amazon's restrictions.

☆ Tesla rival Lucid plans layoffs, as manufacturing and production challenges mount for EV startups
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Lucid, a Tesla rival, is planning layoffs. The EV startup is planning to lay off hundreds of employees, my colleague Alexa St. John reported. Lucid has had a challenging few months, as it works to nail down manufacturing and production and get cars on the roads. It's not the only EV company that's struggling. Insider's Tim Levin tested out charging a KIA EV at a former Tesla supercharger that's open to all EVs.

☆ Microsoft's Charlie Bell confirms security layoffs in internal email: 'While we have restructured in some areas, we will continue to invest to grow in others.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Microsoft Security boss Charlie Bell confirmed layoffs in his organization. Bell said security remains critical for Microsoft and that it will continue to grow despite cuts. Microsoft Security boss Charlie Bell confirmed layoffs on his team in an internal email viewed by Insider. In Monday's email, Bell said security remains critical for Microsoft and that it will continue to grow the organization despite the cuts. "Security remains a critical area of investment for the company and our customers, and while we have restructured in some areas, we will continue to invest to grow in others."

☆ Leaked Microsoft documents show layoffs coming to Charlie Bell's security organization on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Microsoft is planning layoffs in Charlie Bell's security organization, according to documents viewed by Insider. A person familiar with the plans said the cuts would affect hundreds of employees in the US. Microsoft is planning to conduct layoffs within Charlie Bell's security organization on Monday, according to documents viewed by Insider. Although, Bell's unit notified some employees in Europe and India about potential layoffs earlier this month. Security is intended to be a critical investment area for Microsoft, particularly since Bell's hiring, but those plans appear to have been stunted by the economic downturn.

☆ Leaked Microsoft organizational chart shows the 19 people running its all-important cloud business
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An internal org chart shows the 19 people running Microsoft's Cloud + AI org under CEO Satya Nadella. An internal Microsoft organizational chart viewed by Insider shows the people in charge of the company's cloud and artificial intelligence business — a business so tremendous, it employs at least one-third of Microsoft's massive workforce. The Cloud + AI org is responsible for Microsoft's Azure cloud business, plus its data platform, developer services, and software like its Dynamics 365 customer relationship management tool. The org is run by Scott Guthrie, one of CEO Satya Nadella's top lieutenants and the exec who has led Microsoft's cloud business since at least 2011. Nat Friedman, the former CEO of Microsoft subsidiary GitHub who stepped down in November 2021, also remained on the org chart viewed by Insider.

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