Microsoft accelerates AI dominance with $65 billion infrastructure plan and Mistral partnership while EU launches probe into GitHub Copilot data practices.
Microsoft commits $65 billion to AI expansion through 2025 as EU regulators examine GitHub Copilot’s compliance with data protection laws.
Strategic Expansion Meets Regulatory Hurdles
Microsoft announced on 25 June 2024 a strategic partnership with French AI firm Mistral to diversify its Azure cloud offerings beyond OpenAI dependencies. This follows the company’s 22 June technical disclosure of GPT-4.1’s enhanced coding capabilities, showing 40% faster context recognition in development tests.
The $65 billion investment plan, revealed through Microsoft’s official blog, prioritizes Southeast Asian markets with new Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur data centers launched 23 June. These NVIDIA H100-powered hubs aim to support regional language model development across Indonesia’s $300 billion digital economy.
European Compliance Challenges
EU data authorities initiated a GDPR compliance investigation into GitHub Copilot on 24 June 2024, as reported by TechCrunch. The probe focuses on training data transparency and copyright attribution mechanisms, potentially delaying European deployments of Microsoft’s flagship coding assistant.
This regulatory action contrasts with Microsoft’s European alliance strategy, exemplified by the Mistral partnership announced just one day prior. Analysts note the dual approach reflects growing antitrust concerns about concentrated AI infrastructure control.
Infrastructure Race Intensifies
Microsoft activated three new AI data centers in Southeast Asia on 23 June, expanding its global GPU cluster network to 78 locations. The Kuala Lumpur facility specifically targets Malaysia’s National AI Framework 2024-2030, which aims to double tech sector contributions to GDP by 2027.
The company simultaneously upgraded GitHub Copilot’s real-time code optimization engine, claiming 28% fewer computational errors in benchmark tests. However, developers have raised concerns about opaque training data sources following Microsoft’s 22 June technical documentation release.
Historical Context
Microsoft’s AI infrastructure blitz continues its decade-long cloud expansion strategy that began with Satya Nadella’s 2014 “mobile-first, cloud-first” initiative. The company previously invested $15 billion in 2020 to expand Azure’s global footprint, which now commands 24% of the cloud market.
EU regulators have maintained consistent scrutiny of US tech giants, fining Microsoft $1.4 billion in 2018 for antitrust violations related to Azure licensing practices. The current GitHub Copilot investigation echoes 2021’s $425 million GDPR penalty against Amazon for data processing violations.
