The gross domestic product of the UK in 2022 was 2.27 trillion British pounds, or $2.9 trillion in freedom bucks.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s current market capitalisation is currently $3.01 trillion.
A mind-bogglingly unfathomable number, yet one that still doesn’t reflect the value of the Redmond megacap, according to some analysts anyway.
At its current valuation, Microsoft is now neck and neck with Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, ETR:APC) as the world’s most valuable company.
This is down Microsoft’s blockbuster rally in 2023, thanks to its first-mover advantage in the breakneck-paced rise of artificial intelligence.
But, according to Deutsche Bank, Microsoft’s exclusivity rights for the usage of OpenAI’s groundbreaking ChatGPT large-language model is only the beginning.
Deutsche Bank's report on Microsoft's AI World Tour in New York City, a developer-focused event, provides some tantalising takeaways on the current state and future direction of AI in computing.
A key focus of the event was Azure's AI infrastructure, which is capable of handling large AI workloads.
This includes Microsoft's significant supercomputing capabilities and Project Forge, which has improved GPU utilization significantly.
The event also underscored Microsoft's approach to integrating privacy and security directly into Generative AI models, and the establishment of an office of Responsible AI.
Deutsche Bank also highlighted Microsoft Copilots as tools to enhance productivity.
These AI-driven assistants are designed to augment knowledge bases and technical skill sets, extending their utility across various business applications.
Microsoft Fabric's demonstration was another notable feature.
It showed how AI could integrate data from multiple sources without the need for transformation, indicating a shift in traditional data architecture.
The report also touches on the rise of smaller language models like Phi-2. These models are presented as cost-effective alternatives for specific GenAI use cases, suggesting a future trend towards more economical AI models.
“Not only is the company gaining massive mindshare, we see evidence of tangible commitments translating into real value creation for customers, which supports building financial tailwinds for Microsoft that should compound rapidly as reference cases emerge and incremental innovation continues to be announced and layered across the AI stack,” said Deutsche Bank.
“We contend that this is still not fully appreciated in current consensus forecasts and think estimate revisions can help propel the stock higher over 2024.”
I should have bought Microsoft stock in the 80s, as the old adage goes.
According to Deutsche Bank, nothing has changed.