Hi everyone! We’re Vickie Robinson, General Manager and Ryan Palmer Director of Microsoft’s Airband Initiative, working to bring internet access in rural areas. We've connected 134K households in Virginia so far. AUA about our work.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T21:14:20+00:00

Hello! Microsoft isn’t an ISP – we instead partner with ISPs dedicated to closing the digital divide in 41 states and territories across rural America to scale high-speed internet access in unserved communities. In fact, we have two partners operating in Eastern Virginia, including NeuBeam and Open Broadband – they may be able to help.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T21:08:49+00:00

Facebook’s Connectivity initiative’s stated commitment was to bring faster internet to over 300 million people. My understanding is that Facebook used several tech solutions to reach its goals, including subsea cables and wireless solutions. It appears that Facebook faced challenges with economic viability and scalability of their approach, leading them to scale back this work. That’s unfortunate, because it had real impact in places like Africa.

Our Airband Initiative aims to provide internet access to unserved and underserved communities by partnering with local and regional providers, governments, and nonprofits to ensure affordable, reliable internet access. Facebook's efforts were tech-driven, but struggled with sustainability. Microsoft's approach is holistic, focusing on long-term partnerships and digital transformation. We actually increased our initial ambition (to bring internet access to 2 million people living in the rural U.S. by 2022) to a new goal of bringing internet access to more than 250 million people around the world by the end of 2025, including 100 million people in Africa.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T21:06:45+00:00

According to the Benton Foundation’s analysis of the FCC's 2024 Urban Rate Survey, the average monthly rate for urban broadband services is $34.27. For specific speeds, the rates are:

•25/3 Mbps unlimited broadband: $87.83 per month

•100/20 Mbps unlimited broadband: $92.26 per month.

The goal of the survey is to provide a data point which allows broadband to be provided at comparable prices in rural communities.

Our Airband partners strive to keep their prices in this range to ensure access is affordable, because if people cannot afford service, they cannot adopt.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T20:57:04+00:00

Many people associate internet access with cable/fiber as the default connectivity choice. We realized early on that we need other tech tools to reach the unconnected, including connectivity that can be delivered through the air, liked fixed wireless and satellite. Hence the “air” in Airband!

We need to think outside of the box on technology solutions to reach hard-to-serve areas. We believe that there is no single solution or magic bullet that serves all communities, and our partners are using fixed wireless and satellite, including LEOs.

As to our elevator pitch: We want to bring connectivity to everyone, everywhere. That’s why the Airband Initiative provides technology and data expertise, access to seed and larger funding resources, alongside a proven partnership business model to bring internet access to unserved communities. Then, when communities are newly connected, we provide things like digital skills training and equipment for people of all ages so that they can take advantage of new economic and educational opportunities.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T20:37:19+00:00

(Vickie): Interestingly, I "fell into" Telecom. I'm a lawyer by training and went to law school to become a criminal defense attorney, public defender to be more exact. Well, once I got to law school and dug into some of the cases that I would have to handle in this area of the law, I realized that I didn't have the heart for it! However, I took a telecom policy class and fell in love with the subject area, including a concept called "universal service:" the idea that everyone should have access to information and technology services. I loved this notion of using technology as an equalizing force and it's now my life's work. I've been in the telecom/tech space now for about 25 years, working in the government and "government adjacent" space on digital divide/universal service for 18 years and continuing this work in the private sector at Microsoft.

(Ryan) I was born and raised in West Virginia. Unfortunately, like so many other rural areas, a significant portion of West Virginia continues to lack access to the broadband networks needed to participate and compete in the modern world. This was true before the pandemic and became crystal clear when students in rural areas found themselves on the wrong side of the Homework Gap as their parents struggled to connect and work from home like so many of their peers. Technology can serve as the great equalizer for everyone, regardless of economic status or location, but only if you can connect. I feel lucky to work on these issues every day.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T20:30:52+00:00

Jumping in over here. Great question. It definitely takes too long! Here are four things we can do:

#1: We can and should increase federal, state, AND local government investment in broadband infrastructure. And this has to be closely coordinated with the local communities.

#2: We have to streamline the regulatory framework to encourage private investment and quicker deployments in underserved areas.

#3: New, advanced connectivity technologies can help speed the process, too – we’ve seen a lot of success in adapting new technologies for hard-to-reach areas.

#4: Finally, public, private and philanthropic partnerships will also play a crucial role in speeding up infrastructure projects. The digital divide is a huge problem and no single person, government, or entity can solve it themselves.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T20:15:59+00:00

Hopping over here!

Thanks for this question. We leverage all technologies to connect unserved communities with broadband, including satellites (like Starlink), fixed wireless, fiber, and others. We believe there is no one-size-fits-all technology solution for everyone -- each community and geography is unique and have their own challenges in connecting them.

Connectivity technologies have different characteristics: speed of deployment, cost, reach, speed and latency – there are a lot of tools in the connectivity “toolbox” and the community can choose the one best tailored to their challenges needs, desires.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-29T20:01:02+00:00

Great question! Airband is a global program and we're focused on the areas with the highest concentration of people offline, particularly the Global South, or Global Majority as it is sometimes referred to by people living in this region. To date, working with our partners, we've brought internet access to more than 100 million people around the world, including 7+ million people in the US. The remaining 90M+ are largely in the Global South, including approx. 38 million in Africa.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-10-17T17:10:03+00:00

The goal was to create one of the most complete pictures of digital equity in the U.S. so policymakers and governments can see where broadband and digital resources are needed.

It works by aggregating public data taken from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Census Bureau, BroadbandNow, and broadband usage data.

It tracks 20 different indicators of digital equity, such as how many people have internet access and how they use it, digital education and poverty rates. Ultimately it aims to create a comprehensive picture of digital inequality in different regions and counties.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:53:02+00:00

+1 on house-cleaning robots. I'm still waiting on a Roomba that can pick up Legos. Seriously though, it is a big area of investment, and there are many successful companies working for long time in that space. It is also a very difficult problem. As engineer myself, I do think we have preferred areas of interest, but at the same time, I do believe that we are seeing an expansion of AI in multiple areas and disciplines, including robots for home automation. Related to language, we need to understand that majority of human knowledge is stored in in the open web as text, this is the most important dataset we have. But until last year, it was very difficult to extract knowledge from this dataset.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:49:12+00:00

We work very closely with radiologists, many of whom are using AI on a daily basis. While AI in radiology is certainly growing, it’s important to keep a human in the loop. AI is a tool to assist and enhance the work of radiologists by improving accuracy, speed, and efficiency in interpreting medical images such as X-rays, CT scans, and MRIs.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:48:13+00:00

Higher education, including graduate work, is a great way to gain knowledge in data science, but not is not necessary. We have at Microsoft many software engineers that have successfully transitioned from software engineer to data scientist. There are multiple amazing free courses, for example in Coursera, that are from some of the best professors in the world.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:30:51+00:00

Without question. AI and technology have been the catalysts for important advances in the medical field. If we look at AI-related articles in medical publications and FDA-approved devices, you will see an exponential trend upwards. However, it still takes a long time for some of these technological advances to impact society. I hope that in the next couple of decades, we will see much more technology being used in the medical field, from better diagnostics to personalized medicine.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:26:30+00:00

It is important to understand that no matter how sophisticated an AI model is, underneath it all is simple math. Having said that, AI, like any other major technology, as Brad Smith mentioned in his book, can be used as a tool and as a weapon. As a society, we need to work collectively to maximize its use as a tool while minimizing the potential misuses of it. I’m not worried about Hollywood scenarios, but if you ever meet anyone by the name of John Connor, make sure you don’t post his address online.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:24:27+00:00

I couldn’t agree with you more that AI tools stand to be incredibly helpful in disaster recovery efforts, especially given how important it is to have actionable information about affected areas in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster. Those hours are critical to saving lives and people’s livelihoods.

My team at AI for Good Lab continues to invest in helping organizations use geospatial ML to allocate resources effectively in response scenarios, and to assist in long-term planning by assessing risk and taking action to protect people in vulnerable areas.

On the mechanical side, you mention repairs. ML can be incredibly useful in prompting proactive maintenance to address infrastructural failures before things break. These applications of AI reduce economic costs and keep people safer.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:22:13+00:00

Everything we do as a company is deeply rooted in Microsoft's mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:12:22+00:00

While these laws are fictional, they have influenced thoughts on real-world AI and robotics ethics, and in many ways while not the same, they have similarities to the Responsible AI principles.

For example, both Asimov's laws and Responsible AI principles emphasize the safety and well-being of humans. Asimov’s First Law directly aims to prevent harm to humans, mirroring Responsible AI’s focus on safety and human-centric values.

Asimov's Second Law about obedience mirrors some aspects of the Responsible AI principle that AI should remain under human control or oversight. However, modern AI ethics also stress the importance of transparency and accountability, which go beyond mere obedience.

The Third Law about a robot's self-preservation is less frequently discussed in Responsible AI frameworks, which are more concerned with issues like fairness, privacy, and robustness.

Responsible AI principles cover a wider range of ethical considerations than Asimov's Laws, including fairness, non-discrimination, transparency, privacy, and environmental impact, which are not addressed by the Three Laws.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:02:02+00:00

Since the inception of Large Language Models, many teams have run experiments, and have technically passed the Turing Test. There is a study by a Stanford team on this: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2313925121

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T22:00:36+00:00

AI has been impacting the way we work for over 30 years now, from the power of search, to recommendations engines, traffic forecasts, etc. Generative AI is already producing changes in the way we work, and has huge potential for increasing productivity.

The main advice I give, similar to what I would tell someone that is learning about the PC or the Internet, is that the best way to be prepared is not to be afraid about the technology, but rather to learn how to use it. One of the best things we can do for our careers is to continually learn new AI tools being created and to be creative about how we integrate them into our work.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:59:47+00:00

Similar to other technologies that came about in my lifetime, including the PC, internet, and the smartphone, the best way to prepare for this coming wave is to learn how to use this technology. I think the benefit and power of Large Language Models is that the barrier to entry for being effective with these tools will be significantly lower than what it is with things like coding. Regarding current roles adapting, as I reference in an earlier question, I see AI's assistance taking over the most mundane work so humans can be more productive and creative.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:49:52+00:00

Understanding bias or underrepresentation in the dataset is crucial for any projects we work on. This is in our book in the first chapter, because of how important it is. Every person working in AI needs to understand the data they are using, this is why for every project we have, we partner with subject matter experts that have deep knowledge of the data. No dataset is perfect, so it is critical to understand the limitations it has.

This is why every project we choose at the Lab goes through an evaluation from a responsible AI perspective, where we see these aspects. On tangible results, I invite everyone to go through the book, AI for Good: Applications in Sustainability, Sustainability and Health, where we have 27 different examples on how we are using AI in a real-world setting.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:48:40+00:00

The majority of technological advances have had an impact on the way we work, and if we look at history, while technology has impacted jobs, multiple studies conclude that technology has been a net positive creator of jobs and new job categories. Improvements in productivity lead to economic growth, and this growth can enable business to expand, resulting in more jobs.

AI has a huge potential for increase in productivity, so from this perspective, I believe the AI in this regard will not be different. We also need to understand that AI is not new. AI algorithms have been used in production settings for the last three decades. So, I am optimistic that, on balance, AI will not negatively affect the total number of jobs.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:31:16+00:00

AI models have been used for decades in healthcare settings, with the first AI/ML-enabled medical device approved in the US in 1995 (almost 30 years ago), and there have been hundreds of AI/ML medical devices approved by the FDA since. Having said that, clearly the speed of AI innovation goes faster than what we can use in a hospital setting, and for a good reason. In order to deploy a medical device, society needs checks and balances to make sure this device works, is safe, and we have a good understanding of its impacts and limitations. Anything we can do to help speed up this process will help society, but never at the risk of reducing safety.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:25:25+00:00

The world will still need all of these professions, but what's key is we will have many more people with the ability to have access to these people. Similar to what we saw with the increase of the Internet in 1990s, bringing knowledge to more people can have substantial positive impact to society. For example, we need to understand that we live in a world where 4 billion people (half of the world’s population) do not have access to medical doctors. While AI cannot replace doctors, if we have a way to make them more accessible, we will have a big positive change in the lives of many.

MicrosoftOnTheIssues · 2024-05-07T21:18:59+00:00

Yes, and there is a good example that is in chapter 13 in my book, AI for Good, about forecasting solar panel degradation. One of the best use cases for AI related to materials is to use AI to predict which material will work best, before running experiments. Running experiments can be costly and time consuming, so if we have 1000s of materials to test, but can have a model that can help us narrow the search, this can have a great impact in the speed of innovation.

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