Microsoft joins hands with X; will now host Grok 3 and Grok 3 Mini AI

In a development few saw coming, Microsoft has announced that it will be hosting Elon Musk’s Grok 3 and Grok 3 Mini AI models on its Azure AI Foundry platform.

The two tech titans, often portrayed as rivals in the AI race, are now joining forces in a move that could shake up how advanced models are distributed and accessed across the industry.

So what’s actually happening here?

Back in January, Elon Musk’s xAI unveiled Grok 3, its most powerful model yet. Designed to rival heavyweights like Microsoft’s own Copilot, Grok 3 quickly became a buzzword in AI circles.

But now, at Microsoft’s Build Developer Conference, the tech giant revealed that it’s opening the doors to Grok on Azure. This means Microsoft’s own teams, as well as Azure AI Foundry customers, will soon have access to the Grok models, complete with the same service level agreements (SLAs) users expect from any other Microsoft product.

For you and me, this means that the same quality, availability, and other aspects of Grok will match that of, say, your Windows, or Office 365.

The move aligns with CEO Satya Nadella’s bigger vision, which is to turn Microsoft into a go-to infrastructure provider for third-party AI models. The company has already dipped its toes in this space with models like DeepSeek R1, and Grok is the next big step in that direction.

Of course, this partnership comes with its own layer of drama. Given Elon Musk’s well-documented tensions with OpenAI, and by extension, its close ally Microsoft, this collaboration raises a few eyebrows. Could there be some internal friction brewing? Possibly. But from a user perspective, it’s hard to see this as anything but a win.

Azure AI Foundry customers now get access to one of the most talked-about models of 2024, without switching platforms. For Microsoft, it’s another feather in the cap as it positions itself as a neutral ground for cutting-edge AI.

And for everyone else? It’s popcorn time.