• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, Yesterday

Microsoft announced a $400 million investment in Switzerland to build out an AI and cloud infrastructure, as one of its Russian subsidiaries prepares to file for bankruptcy.

“Switzerland has created one of the world’s leading innovation ecosystems, blending world-class research with real-world applications,” Brad Smith, Microsoft vice chair and president, wrote in a blog published Monday in an updated post. “For more than three decades, we have stood by our Swiss customers’ side. This latest investment helps further strengthen Switzerland’s long-term economic resilience and competitiveness."

The commitment focuses on expanding Microsoft’s cloud and AI infrastructure, supporting Switzerland’s startups and small to medium-sized businesses, develops AI skills and digital competencies, and strengthen the country’s role as a global hub.

Microsoft will upgrade four datacenters near Zurich and Geneva with advanced AI infrastructure, extending investments made since launching local data centers six years ago. I addresses the growing demand for cloud services in Switzerland and ensures continued support of AI services in the region.

The investment makes sense when acknowledging Switzerland’s contribution to GitHub AI. The country ranks second globally to GitHub AI contributor share, with contributors nearly doubling since 2022.

The investment caters to growing demand for cloud services and AI applications in Switzerland, which Microsoft recognizes for its innovation. The company said the share of users in Switzerland engaging with AI tools rose by approximately 3 percentage points to 31% during the past six months. 

Uncertainties for growth still exist centered on Microsoft’s success of training programs, data privacy laws, and impact on the environment.

As Microsoft expands in Switzerland, it is winding down operations in Russia with the decision to close Microsoft Rus LLC, primary a legal entity for the company in Russia, responsible for marketing, localization, and partner relations.

Microsoft has been phasing down operations, but the bankruptcy not published on the Fedresurs registry, per Reuters, follows Russian President Putin’s recent call to throttle foreign technology companies to promote domestic software alternatives.

Microsoft has three other subsidiaries in Russia aside than Microsoft Rus LLC, according to the Russian news agency Tass. Those include Microsoft Development Centre Rus for software development and engineering, Microsoft Mobile Rus for mobile technologies and services, and Microsoft Payments Rus for financial transactions and payment services.