Microsoft is preparing to host the Grok AI model from xAI, Elon Musk’s AI company, within its Azure AI Foundry platform.
According to The Verge, this information comes from a reliable source within the company. Discussions with xAI are at an advanced stage, and the Grok model may soon be available to both developers and Microsoft’s internal product teams.
Azure AI Foundry is Microsoft’s development environment for AI applications. The platform provides access to tools, infrastructure, and various AI models. By including Grok in its offering, developers can integrate the model into their applications. Meanwhile, Microsoft will leverage its potential within services such as Copilot and Dynamics 365. Microsoft itself is declining to comment on the reports for the time being.
Microsoft is not only focusing on OpenAI
The move is part of Microsoft’s broader strategy to play a leading role as an infrastructure provider for AI models. Led by CEO Satya Nadella, the company is expanding its support to models from various providers, despite its close collaboration with OpenAI. Earlier this year, for example, the DeepSeek R1 model was rolled out rapidly on Azure, an unusual speed for the tech company.
A notable detail is that Microsoft will reportedly only provide hosting capacity for Grok and will not be involved in training future xAI models. Elon Musk has previously indicated that xAI will train its models internally from now on, after canceling a billion-dollar contract with Oracle.
Tense relations
The collaboration with xAI could be a sensitive internal issue at Microsoft, partly due to Musk’s involvement in the controversial DOGE project. In addition, tensions with OpenAI are mounting. Last month, OpenAI filed a lawsuit against Musk, and relations between Microsoft and OpenAI are also said to be under strain.
With the possible arrival of Grok on Azure, Microsoft is strengthening its position as a neutral platform for multiple AI models. GitHub Copilot already supports models from Anthropic and Google, among others. Microsoft is expected to offer users more freedom of choice in the future regarding which AI models they want to use within their applications.