Microsoft and blockchain developer Aptos Labs have come together to use their expertise in bridging the gap between Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the blockchain technology. The buzz around combining Web3 and AI seems to be expanding all over the global tech industry. Nascent in existence, Web3 firms are looking to rely on comparatively more developed AI tech. The ambition is to tailor blockchain solutions related to banking, agriculture, health, and education. Both the firms will also work together to explore innovative solutions.
Aptos, under this partnership, will utilise Microsoft’s AI infrastructure to curate industry solutions with the goodness of both AI and blockchain. As for the software giant, this partnership could be one of its initial steps into deeper Web3 exploration.
“By fusing Aptos Labs’ technology with the Microsoft Azure Open AI Service capabilities, we aim to democratise the use of blockchain for innovators to develop new decentralised applications using AI,” Rashmi Misra, General Manager, AI and Emerging Technologies, Microsoft said in an official statement.
Microsoft is interested in exploring blockchain branches like asset tokenisation and Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) through Aptos’ ecosystem.
The interest of Web3 developers and venture capitalists in the field of AI is backed by the interest millennials and GenZ populations have in merging blockchain with artificial intelligence.
In May, KuCoin surveyed 1,125 crypto users from different parts of the world to understand how the Web3 community perceives AI. Over 64 percent of the younger respondents confirmed that they were somewhat familiar with the uses of AI in crypto and blockchain.
This backs Microsoft’s interest in giving Web3 another shot.
Previously, it established a team to work around its metaverse initiatives. In February, however, Microsoft drew the curtains on its industrial metaverse division to overcome the recession-like situation that was prevalent at the time. The hundred staff members who were part of this team were reportedly fired.
As for Aptos Labs, a group of former Meta employees came together to launch the Aptos proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain in October 2022. Prior to that in July, Aptos Labs had raised $150 million (roughly Rs. 1,200 crore) in a Series A funding round led by FTX Ventures and Jump Crypto.
The Aptos blockchain is powered by Move — an open-source programming language developed by Meta — that was initially intended to support the abandoned stablecoin project Diem.