Blog

Microsoft has retired its program that granted incorporated AI startups with a validated business plan up to $150,000 in Azure credits and replaced it with a two-track system.

The Microsoft for Startups program, which Redmond was promoting at RSA in May, was generous and a good way to drive young companies with AI ideas onto its cloud platform. But as of Tuesday, that multi-tier model has been phased out: existing activated credits remain valid until they expire, but newcomers now face stricter limits.

Startups backed by an affiliated investor enter the Microsoft for Startups Investor Network track, which starts with $100,000 in Azure credits and can unlock additional awards based on referral source and engagement. Alternatively, early-stage teams without funding may qualify for up to $5,000 of Azure credits. For founders who’d budgeted runway around the old $150K ceiling, the June 27 announcement was a rude shock.

“By introducing two distinct paths — a streamlined, self-service experience for earlier-stage startups, and a higher touch experience for investor-backed startups, we’re making it easier for every founder to access the right resources, at the right time,” Redmond said in the post announcing the changes.

One startup founder who spoke to The Register on condition of anonymity praised the old program, but said some warning would have been useful as this has wrecked budgets and may sink the entire project.

“We’re in for close to $80,000-$100,000 at this point on costs outside of Azure,” they said. “Everybody was like ‘we believe in this idea, and we think we can get this thing off the ground,’ but this business plan was sort of tied to this runway through Azure.”

Part of the problem, the founder explained, was that once you’ve actually built around Azure, switching to another platform causes a host of problems. They accepted that part of the reason Microsoft was offering such a deal was to lock people into Azure, but the abrupt shift with no warning is causing massive problems.

I’m not contesting the legality of their choices. It’s just that, you know, this is people’s lives you’re playing with

“I’m not contesting the legality of their choices. It’s just that, you know, this is people’s lives you’re playing with,” the founder told us.

“If someone has taken it seriously enough to get to this point, maybe they need to just stop accepting new applications and give everyone a few months’ notice, that’s fair enough. If you really kind of hitch your business plan to a program and then it abruptly disappears, that’s pretty catastrophic.”

Redmond said that it isn’t changing its Pegasus Program, an invitation-only group of people who are already working within the Microsoft for Startups program. Pegasus links startups to Microsoft sales and assigns them a dedicated Cloud Solutions Architect to act as tech support.

But overall, the changes mean there’s very little middle ground for startups seeking financial incentives from Microsoft to use its cloud platform. There’s $5,000 Azure credits for the early stages, and then you’re on your own until you can attract investors.

Thankfully, there are at least other options, even if it means reworking an application. Google for Startups Cloud Program is offering $200,000 in cloud credits, and $350,000 if it’s an AI idea, as well as advice from staffers. Amazon too has its AWS Activate program offering up to $100,000 in credits, or up to $300,000 additional credits for startups using Trainium or Inferentia.

Microsoft had no comment at the time of going to press. ®

Air India is fighting two battles in the wake of the AI-171 crash: one with grief, and another with fraud. As it tries to help families of the 260 people who lost their lives lost in the June 12 tragedy, Air India reported a series of fake handles cropping up on X (formerly Twitter), masquerading as official support accounts offering “help” to the families of victims. “We have flagged multiple handles that pretended to offer assistance. We don’t want anyone to fall prey to fraudsters at such a vulnerable time,” said a source familiar with the matter.The deceit is not limited to social media. The airline’s dedicated helplines, set up for grieving families and survivors, have received a staggering number of calls. While some heartbreaking, others bizarre.“Just three days after the crash, a caller claimed that a friend on the flight was carrying their Louis Vuitton bag and demanded Rs 1.5 lakh as compensation,” said the source. Another wanted reimbursement for “precious jewellery” allegedly in a relative’s luggage. One even asked for free international tickets for their entire family this winter, claiming to be a distant relative of a victim.“Amid the massive outpouring of grief in the aftermath of India’s worst air disaster in recent memory, a few individuals have been trying to use this situation to make a quick buck. It is painful to see some people, claiming to be related to the passengers, trying to take advantage of the situation,” the source said.Air India had set up two 24/7 helpline numbers to handle inquiries and provide support. On Day 1 alone, the helplines received more than 10,000 calls, many from inconsolable family members. “The volume was overwhelming, but it wasn’t just that. The emotional trauma of listening to the raw grief of callers broke down many of our call centre staff. Some fainted, others needed counselling or medical help,” the source said.Air India did not respond to queries sent by TOI.In the days following the crash, Air India announced an interim compensation of Rs 25 lakh to the families of each of the deceased and to the lone survivor to address immediate financial needs. These payments began rolling out from June 20.Tata Sons, the airline’s parent company, announced an additional compensation of Rs 1 crore for the next of kin of each victim. To ensure transparent and long-term support, a dedicated trust with a corpus of Rs 500 crore is being set up.Support on the ground has also come from a massive network of volunteers. More than 500 staff from Air India and 17 other Tata Group companies were deployed in Ahmedabad, each bereaved family was assigned a dedicated caregiver trained to assist with grief management, logistics, and support.