- Microsoft donates $ 4 billion in cash over five years to re -elevate today’s youth
- AI and cloud skills are missing, and much of the global workforce must adapt
- Teachers also get support to help them integrate AI into the classroom
Microsoft has announced a promise to donate $ 4 billion in cash over the course of five years to help K-12 schools, social and technical colleges and non-profit organizations to expand the use of and training initiative to support, AI and Cloud technology.
In a blog post, Microsoft outlined how it wants to support 20 million people by examining them with AI tools to support future working environments, starting at a young age.
“This represents our next chapter for corporate philanthropy and our non-commercial business model,” President Brad Smith explained in the post.
Microsoft Grant scheme to support future workers
As part of the scheme, Microsoft will collaborate with governments to help launch his Elevate Academy to provide AI education from foundation levels to more advanced skills.
The company will also collaborate with Openai, Anthropic and the American Federation of Teachers to create National Academy for AI Instruction and invest $ 23 million over five years to educate 400,000 teachers in AI skills to help them integrate the technology into the classrooms.
“We believe that some of the most important work that is ahead is not just building smarter machines – that is to make sure these machines help people thrive,” Smith added.
The company cited WEF research stating that two-fifths (59%) of the global workforce need new digital skills at the end of the decade. A separate study highlighted by Microsoft also revealed that three-quarters of the global youth lack the right skills for the AI economy.
Despite having dismissed thousands of workers in the post-pandemic years that were largely driven by AI-induced productivity gains, Microsoft’s president emphasized the meaning of human workers in the future.
“This is the work that lies ahead of us – not just building the next generation of AI, but building the next generation of opportunities,” Smith concluded.
