Microsoft owns the Azure cloud-computing platform and is regularly among the world’s highest-valued companies.
Azure is Microsoft’s cloud-computing business, providing infrastructure, platforms, databases, analytics, artificial intelligence services, and other tools over the internet. It competes with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud, while also supporting Microsoft’s broader software ecosystem.
Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975. Its early success came from software for personal computers, especially MS-DOS and Windows. The company later expanded into Office, enterprise software, gaming through Xbox, search, and cloud services.
Market capitalization measures the value assigned by public investors to Microsoft’s outstanding shares. It is separate from annual sales and can move sharply after earnings reports, interest-rate changes, or major developments in artificial intelligence. Microsoft trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker MSFT.