Microsoft and GE have formed an expanded partnership in order to bring industrial IoT solutions to customers more quickly. Microsoft, in a statement, said that the two firms plan to standardise GE’s Predix solutions on Microsoft Azure. The tech giant said Predix will be deeply integrated “with Azure’s native cloud capabilities, including Azure IoT and Azure Data and Analytics."
Discussing other aspects of the partnership, Microsoft wrote:
“The parties will also co-sell and go-to-market together, offering end customers premier Industrial IoT (IIoT) solutions across verticals. In addition, GE will leverage Microsoft Azure across its business for additional IT workloads and productivity tools, including internal Predix-based deployments, to drive innovation across the company.”
The companies are expecting to bring GE Digital’s expertise in industrial data and applications with Microsoft’s enterprise cloud to help customers deploy industrial applications and achieve outcomes faster. As part of the deal, GE also plans to use Microsoft’s Azure across the company to increase efficiency and innovation. Both firms expect to make a lot of money in the sector with the IoT market predicted to be worth around $1.1 trillion in revenue by 2025.
Discussing the partnership, Bill Ruh, Chief Digital Officer, GE and CEO, GE Digital, said:
“Every industrial company will have to master digital to compete in the future, connecting machines and making them more intelligent to drive efficiency and productivity. Our customers are asking for us to make a deeper connection between our two companies. Through this expanded partnership, Microsoft and GE are enabling customers around the world to harness the power of the Predix portfolio, including Predix Asset Performance Management, to unlock new capabilities to drive growth.”
Judson Althoff, Executive Vice President, Microsoft, commented as well, noting:
“The industrial sector plays an important role in fueling economies around the world. With this strategic partnership, GE and our mutual customers will benefit from a trusted platform with the flexibility and scalability to deliver unprecedented results and help advance their business potential.”
The pair didn’t say when they’d begin bringing things to market together, only that they were looking to explore deeper integration in future between Predix IIoT solutions with Power BI, PowerApps, and other third-party solutions, as well as bringing hybrid deployments to public and private clouds with the Azure Stack.