Advancing the Frontiers of Computing

(i) Letter from Rick Rashid

Numbering more than 700 people at five labs on three continents, Microsoft Research has grown steadily since our founding in 1991. We are now one of the largest, fastest-growing, and most highly respected software research organizations in the world.

The reason for our dramatic growth is simple: Microsoft values innovation. The company demonstrates its commitment to ongoing technology development through significant financial support, with as much as 17 percent of total annual revenues earmarked for Research and Development. Unlike other companies where research projects must be funded by individual product groups, Microsoft funds research at the corporate level. The direct results of that commitment are clear. Technology research has influenced virtually every product the company has developed, from Windows® and Office to SQL Server™ and development tools, and from Xbox® and MSN® to Tablet PC and SPOT. Microsoft Research has changed the way the world works.

To be successful, basic and applied research depends on three practices that are essential for any viable business venture: building mutually beneficial relationships, maintaining effective two-way communication, and nurturing strong bonds of trust. We carry out these practices through collaboration with internal product teams as well as external researchers.

Our labs are unique among corporate research facilities, balancing an open academic model with an effective process for transferring technological advancements to product development. We work with researchers around the world to identify the challenges before us, share our findings, and continually explore possibilities for the future of computing.

We are excited about developing technologies that enable people to take their computers wherever they go—and use them without thinking about it. We fully expect people one day will have devices built into every room in the house, those devices will speak our language, and we will interact with computers as naturally as we interact with one another. We anticipate that people of the future will look back on the next 10 years as the time when computers “really became useful.”

Developing next-generation applications that improve lives is stimulating work, and we are excited by the myriad opportunities to advance the frontiers of computing. Backed by a steadfast corporate commitment to research, we fully expect to continue meeting our primary goal: finding answers to the greatest technological challenges.

Rick Rashid,
Senior Vice President, Microsoft Research

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Contents

• Advancing the Frontiers of Computing
• Microsoft Research: Making the Impossible Possible
• Creating a Foundation for Technology Breakthroughs
• Assembling an All-Star Team of Research Talent
• Imagining What Comes Next
• Putting Innovation to Work in Microsoft Products
• Advancing the State of the Art
• Planting the Seeds of Future Innovation
• Building a Global Think Tank