Microsoft investment in Element AI bolsters Montreal's status as AI hub

Microsoft Corp. is funding a Montreal startup co-founded by renowned artificial-intelligence expert Yoshua Bengio, another endorsement of the city's reputation as an emerging global centre for one of most anticipated technology trends. The Redmond, Wash.based software giant, which is positioning itself to be a big player in AI, is announcing Monday the launch of a new venture fund to finance AI firms. Its first investment is in Montreal-based Element AI, co-founded by Dr. Bengio, a University of Montreal professor regarded as one of the pioneers of "deep learning," a field that uses algorithms to model and process information similar to how the brain works. Microsoft will also provide Element AI with access to its technology and services. "AI holds great promise to augment human capabilities and improve society," Nagrap Kashyap, corporate vice president of Microsoft Ventures, said.