Scientists from Microsoft labs all around the world gathered at Microsoft"s headquarters in Redmond, Washington for Microsoft Research TechFest 2007, the company"s annual showcase of research projects. The three-day TechFest event is aimed at sharing accomplishments and challenges between Microsoft"s international industry leaders. "It"s a blast. I learn a tremendous amount about what my counterparts are up to," said Roy Levin, director of the software firm"s lab in Silicon Valley in Northern California. At TechFest 2007, researchers and product teams put together more than 100 innovations all aimed to advance the frontiers of computing for the industry and customers.
Microsoft Research has grown to include about 750 scientists and the ranks are expected to grow to 800 by June, according to Microsoft Research Senior Vice President Rick Rashid. Speaking today at TechFest before an audience of customers, industry and government leaders and independent software vendors, he announced: "We do research in just about everything. Our goal is to change the world and to change the technologies that make the world a better place. TechFest is one-stop shopping to see and experience the breadth of software innovations we"re pursuing that will allow people to explore their interests more deeply and share the things they care about more easily."