Microsoft partners with India's Sarvam AI for voice-based genAI tools

Microsoft will support the development of voice-based generative artificial intelligence (AI) applications through a partnership with Indian startup Sarvam AI, the Windows-maker said on Thursday. The partnership was announced during CEO Satya Nadella's three-day visit as the company pushes for wider adoption of its products by consumers in India, the fastest-growing major economy.

On Wednesday, Nadella had announced an initiative to provide 2 million Indians with AI skilling opportunities by 2025.

Sarvam AI is building genAI models targeting Indic languages and context, and will now create its solutions on Microsoft's cloud services including Azure OpenAI Service, Microsoft said in a statement.

The startup - whose founders earlier developed AI models at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras-based research group AI4Bharat - has raised $41 million in a series A funding from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Peak XV Partners and Khosla Ventures.