On 15 May, several netizens on the workplace platform Maimai and social media platform Xiaohongshu (RED) shared updates stating that within Microsoft, primarily China’s Azure cloud platform AI team, hundreds of employees had received a company email enquiring about whether they would be willing to relocate to other regions for work, including the United States, Australia, Ireland and other countries. The company would be responsible for arranging the necessary visas, while employees have until 7 June to respond.
Subsequently, Microsoft responded that this was an optional internal transfer opportunity for some employees and would not affect the company’s operations in the country.
Currently, Microsoft’s AI team is in an awkward position in China. The Chinese government’s policy requires Large Scale Artificial Intelligence to be filed before they can be put online, but tensions between the US and China are restricting China’s development of AI technology. Microsoft’s vice chair and president Brad Smith has stated that China accounts for only 1.5% of Microsoft’s sales, which equated to total sales of $212 billion in the last fiscal year. Therefore, with this 1.5% share, coupled with the new Bing AI search not being available in China, Microsoft’s “isolation” from China’s AI market is becoming increasingly apparent.
At Microsoft Research Asia, the company does not allow Chinese researchers to use the GPT-4 beta and core technologies in advance. Simultaneously, the company has also imposed restrictions on the institute’s research work in quantum computing, facial recognition and synthetic media. From as early as June 2023, Microsoft began seeking visas to move top AI experts from the Chinese capital to its Vancouver-based institute, a move that could affect between 20 to 40 employees, according to media reports.
In contrast, current executive chairman and CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella announced that Microsoft would invest $1.7 billion and $2.2 billion over the next four years in Indonesia and Malaysia, respectively, to build cloud computing and AI computing infrastructure (data centres), and provide AI skills training to up to 840,000 and 200,000 people in the two countries.
According to Microsoft’s official disclosure in September 2022, Microsoft has 9,000 employees in China, more than 80% of whom are software engineers or work in research and development. The same article also announced plans to hire another 1,000 employees by 2023.
Microsoft’s move was met with mixed reactions from the affected employees. Some colleagues saw it as a form of “layoff in disguise”, and although they could choose not to relocate, they were also concerned about their future with the company. One after another, employees posted on Maimai that they were looking for a partner to work and live abroad with, but only amongst Azure group colleagues.
On Xiaohongshu, some netizens commented that Microsoft’s approach is an example for foreign companies, not forgetting to take the local staff with them before withdrawing from China, providing employees with the opportunity to “Run” (润). It is understood that “Run” refers to “leave China to work and live”, and the use of ‘Run’ is to avoid China’s strict censorship.
