Microsoft and OpenAI adjust partnership to open up computing resources to competitors

In the latest announcement, Microsoft and OpenAI announced important adjustments to their partnership. Under the new agreement, OpenAI will be able to access competitors' computing resources, breaking the previous restriction of relying solely on Microsoft's Azure cloud infrastructure. This change means OpenAI will have more flexibility in future research and development and model training.

Microsoft said the new agreement includes modifications to the exclusivity clause for new computing capabilities, which has now been converted to a "right of first refusal" model. In other words, Microsoft has priority in adding new computing resources, but OpenAI can still build additional computing power, mainly for research and training new AI models. Although the basis of the partnership remains unchanged, Microsoft still retains exclusive rights to use OpenAI technology, such as for products such as Copilot, and OpenAI's API is still exclusively available on Azure.

The background of this adjustment also includes OpenAI's cooperation with other companies, such as its recent cooperation with Oracle, to obtain the required computing power, because some OpenAI shareholders believe that Microsoft has failed to meet their needs in a timely manner. The models and user base OpenAI hopes to build require huge computational investments, making collaboration with other companies necessary.

In addition, the relationship between OpenAI and Microsoft has experienced some fluctuations in the past period, especially after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was briefly dismissed, there was some tension in the cooperation between the two parties. The New York Times has reported that the relationship between the two parties has gradually become tense due to OpenAI's financial pressure and friction among internal employees. Microsoft also poached CEO Mustafa Suleiman from Inflection last year to promote its consumer AI business, a move that caused dissatisfaction among OpenAI leadership.

It is worth mentioning that the cooperation agreement between OpenAI and Microsoft also contains a special exemption clause. If OpenAI successfully develops general artificial intelligence (AGI), it may restrict Microsoft's access to powerful future models. The original intention of this clause was to prevent powerful AI from being commercialized prematurely, but OpenAI is currently considering canceling this clause to obtain more financial support.