Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) researchers will get Microsoft Azure hybrid cloud hardware and service credits for their research into edge computing. As noted in a report by GeekWire, CMU will be backed by Microsoft in a partnership with Intel. Microsoft is supporting CMU’s research into edge computing for its importance in the work to upgrade to 5G data speeds.
CMU’s Living Edge Lab, headed by Professor Mahadev Satyanarayanan, will receive an Azure Data Box Edge device with Azure Stack hardware. CMU will also receive Azure cloud computing credits. Satyanarayanan and his ten-person team are already looking into new ways of application development and hardware configurations to handle the new 5G technology and data speeds.
Tad Brockway, head of product management for Azure Storage, Azure Stack, and M&E (media and entertainment) explains Microsoft’s partnership with CMU.
“The intelligent edge, as a phenomenon, it is going to impact us for decades to come. Our partnership with CMU and this Open Edge Initiative of course will be on research having to do with taking this innovation out into the future, but there are all sorts of interesting applications that are available today.”
In 2004, Bill Gates gave a $20 million donation to CMU to build the Gates Center for Computer Science. Also noted by the GeekWire report, Microsoft and CMU have been collaborating on multiple edge computing projects since 2008, so this latest announcement isn’t exactly a surprise. In addition, Microsoft will join the Open Edge Computing Initiative, which is responsible for funding the Living Edge Lab. The Open Edge Computing Initiative members include CMU, Intel, Nokia, vodafone, T-Mobile, Cron Castle, NTT, and now, Microsoft.
