Microsoft and Alphabet are diving deep into AI

This story was delivered to BI Intelligence Apps and Platforms Briefing subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here. Microsoft and Alphabet's Q3 2017 earnings calls highlighted that artificial intelligence (AI) and the cloud are not only major catalysts of growth for the tech giants, but also centerpieces of their long-term strategies. While Alphabet's overall revenue grew 24% year-over-year (YoY) to reach $27.8 billion in the quarter, the company's "Other Revenues" segment -- which lumps together everything from its Pixel smartphone and hardware products to its cloud computing and storage offerings -- generated $3.4 billion, a 12% share of total revenue. And Microsoft reported revenue of $24.5 billion, up 12% YoY, with 28% coming from its Intelligent Cloud segment.