The Imagine Cup was created for students with big dreams, bold ideas, and a vision for bringing them to life with tech. Students just like you! In the 2021 competition, the core components of collaboration, coding, and community are more important than ever – and this year they’re taking the stage in a virtual world.
If you’ve been dreaming ofinnovating for impact, here’swhy you should compete in the 19th annual Imagine Cup:
1. Make a difference with tech
Even as a beginner, building tech skills while innovating to make a difference is accessible to all in the Imagine Cup, regardless of your background in coding.You can get started creating low or no code apps with Power Platform, or if you’re more advanced, try out innovating with Azure Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and other cutting-edge technologies. Whatever your experience level, if you have a big idea and the drive to bring it to life, we have the tools, resources, and learning to support your goals.
2. Find your community of likeminded tech enthusiasts
With four new competition categories in Earth, Education, Healthcare, and Lifestyle, you can build a tech solution aligned with the social issue you’re most passionate about, and find a community of peers who share your vision. You could find future business partners, meet friends for life, and get inspired by others’ solutions.
3. Design a future that’s inclusive andachievable for all
Tech is at the core of Imagine Cup, but so are accessibility and inclusion.Innovating for a future that includes users with different abilities, backgrounds, and demographics is one we can all advocate for and benefit from.Make what matters to youand empower others as part of the process.
4. Build an interdisciplinaryskillset
Whatever your career goals are, thereare so many ways to develop new skills in the competition (and put on your resume later!). From teamwork, to getting hands–on creating a proof of concept and practical business model, live project pitching, and more, your journey will help give you a comprehensive toolkit to take forward.
5. Get hands-on with learning
Step one in the competition is completing the Microsoft Learn Challenge, designed to help you get hands-on with tech learningright from the start and prepare you to build your own project. You can choose to complete one of eight modules aligned to the competition categories – and the learning doesn’t stop there. After you’ve completed the challenge, apply the skills directly to developing your own solution!
6. Win amazing prizes
Here’s a look at some of the incredible prizes up for grabs this year: Allverified Microsoft Learn Challenge submissions are entered into a sweepstakes to win one of five USD250 prizes monthly, World Finals teams can win category prizes of USD10,000, get mentorship with industry pros, and more! Plus, the World Championship winners will ultimately take home USD75,000 and mentorship with Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella. Check out the rules and regulations for more competition and prizing details, and don’t miss out!
7. Reimagine solutions for an online world
It’s no secret that the world needs positive change, now more than ever. With an updated digital competition experience to support you making a difference from anywhere, for everywhere – there’s no better time to get started if you’re driven to shape a better future. Dream it. Build it. Live it.
LONDON, UK and REDMOND, Wash. — Nov. 10, 2020— Microsoft and the Open Data Institute (ODI) on Tuesday announced the launch of an Education Open Data Challenge to shine light on the relationship between broadband access and K-12 (ages 5 to 18 years old) education outcomes. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Education Open Data Challenge will help educators and research organizations better understand the potential long-term impact the ongoing disruption to traditional learning will have on the world’s most vulnerable learners.
Microsoft and the ODI are encouraging teams that wish to participate in the challenge to help generate innovative solutions to close the digital divide in K-12 education to go here to learn more. The winning team will be invited to elect a non-profit organization of their choice to receive a £50,000 award, with the runners-up electing non-profit organizations of their choice to receive £30,000 and £20,000 awards. The challenge is open to teams and individuals based globally.
“As students around the world increasingly rely on technology and connectivity to succeed in school, we must find ways to allow every student, everywhere, to succeed. Combining datasets in new ways can help unlock solutions to expand equitable and robust access to broadband,” said Jennifer Yokoyama, Microsoft Vice President and Chief IP Counsel. “We’re excited to join in the launch of this Education Open Data Challenge to help close the digital divide and level the playing field for students around the world.”
Participants will receive access to tools and resources from Microsoft, the ODI, and BroadbandNow, as well as data made available for the first time as part of this challenge:
Participants will have access to a more granular version of Microsoft’s U.S. broadband usage data, this time with differential privacy applied. Microsoft will make available documentation that demonstrates the impact that applying differential privacy has had on the data.
From BroadbandNow, participants will be able to access U.S. broadband terrestrial provider data.
The use of privacy-preserving technologies will become more prevalent as organizations seek to collaborate across the spectrum of data. The datasets that will be made openly available with the challenge will help participants to assess and understand the effect that technologies such as differential privacy can have on data insights and analysis.
“Organizations like Microsoft and BroadbandNow possess a wealth of interesting data that can be used to provide insights and support decision-makers in the education sector and beyond, especially as they face unprecedented challenges. This Challenge will stimulate the exploration of innovative uses for this data, outside the boundaries of the organizations that hold it,” said Jeni Tennison, Vice President & Chief Strategy Adviser of the ODI. “The ODI is here to help organizations that want to ensure the data they hold brings the most value to the sectors, communities and societies they work in.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted learning for more than 1.6 billion children and youth worldwide, as governments across the globe have closed educational institutions to stop the spread of the virus. In response, schools and teachers have made an unprecedented effort to reach students remotely through distance learning tools and platforms.
As the digital divide is expanded by the abrupt global transition to remote learning, understanding how and where the digital divide affects communities will be critical for managing the short-term delivery of education and ensuring a sustainable, equitable economic recovery.
“We are thrilled to participate in providing data for the Open Data Challenge and look forward to discoveries made by the participants,” said John Busby, Managing Director of BroadbandNow. “Access to affordable broadband internet is crucial to education and digital equity.”
Participating teams will be asked to identify gaps in digital infrastructure that affect the delivery of education services online, pinpoint potential impacts on learning outcomes, and suggest innovative and realistic solutions to address these gaps in a cost-efficient way. Some of the questions the challenge seeks to answer include:
How do students access remote learning, especially those who may not have easy access to digital infrastructure (e.g., technology and internet connectivity)?
What level of digital access to learning do students from disadvantaged groups have, relative to more advantaged groups?
What is the relationship between levels of digital skills and learning outcomes for different demographics?
Participants will have four months to complete the challenge from the opening date. Individuals and teams interested in participating in the challenge can learn more and register interest here. Once registered, individuals will be invited to attend dedicated activities to preview the data, learn more about it from the involved partners, and get equipped on how to best use it ahead of the public release on December 10, 2020.
###
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
About the Open Data Institute
The ODI was co-founded in 2012 by the inventor of the web Sir Tim Berners-Lee and artificial intelligence expert Sir Nigel Shadbolt to show the value of data, and to advocate for the innovative use of data to affect positive change across the globe. We’re an independent, non-profit, non-partisan company headquartered in London, with an international reach. We work with companies and governments to build an open, trustworthy data ecosystem, where people can make better decisions using data and manage any harmful impacts.
For more information, contact:
Microsoft Media Relations, WE Communications for Microsoft (425) 638-7777 [email protected]
Experience the thrill of gaming at 120 frames per second, with faster loading times, richer, more dynamic worlds and much more on Xbox Series X, our fastest most powerful console ever, and Xbox Series S, delivering next-generation performance at an affordable price in the smallest Xbox ever. Plus, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership on console now includes EA Play.
The future of gaming starts today with the launch of Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, bringing the most performant, immersive and compatible next-generation console gaming experiences to players around the world. The launch of these next-generation consoles is the continuation of our vision of an entirely new future for players – one that puts you and your friends at the center of your gaming experience.
Xbox Series X, the most powerful next-generation console, empowers developers to deliver on their creative visions and dreams. It packs an unprecedented 12 teraflops of GPU power and enables new technologies and features like framerates up to 120 fps, hardware-accelerated Direct X raytracing, variable rate shading, and Quick Resume, which enables players to resume exactly where they left off, across multiple titles, ensuring they can get right back to the fun in an instant. Xbox Series X delivers a new level of fidelity, immediacy, precision and accuracy never before seen in console gaming.
Xbox Series S, an all-digital next-gen console, is our smallest, sleekest Xbox ever. Designed to deliver everything that is core to next-generation gaming – faster load times, higher frame rates, and richer, more dynamic worlds – Xbox Series S offers next-generation performance at a more affordable price.
Xbox Series X|S are available in 40 markets around the world today with more to come.
The Best Place to Play the Biggest Games
The launch of Xbox Series X|S heralds a new generation of game experiences built to take full advantage of our fastest consoles ever. Today, when you power on your Xbox Series X|S, you will be greeted by the largest most diverse launch lineup in Xbox history. Games like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Watch Dogs: Legion, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, Gears Tactics, and Tetris Effect: Connected will be some of the much-anticipated next-gen games you can play on day one. Xbox Series X|S launch with more than 40 new games playable today, including 30 with Smart Delivery, which will ensure that you always play the best version of the games you own for your console, across generations.
More incredible games are coming to Xbox Series X|S before the end of the year including Destiny 2: Beyond Lightlaunching November 10 (optimized for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S on December 8) and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War launching November 13. When Cyberpunk 2077 launches on December 10, it will look and play best on our next gen consoles and take advantage of Smart Delivery technology, giving you the best version for whatever Xbox console you own.
And there’s plenty more on the way. Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S have been embraced by the biggest names in game development, including our 15 Xbox Game Studios teams, ensuring Xbox Series X|S will power a new generation of blockbuster games for years to come.
Embrace the Full Power of the Console with Games Optimized for Xbox Series X|S
Games optimized for Xbox Series X|S will showcase unparalleled load-times via the Xbox Velocity Architecture, heightened visuals and hardware-accelerated DirectX raytracing powered by our custom, next generation GPU, heightened visuals, and framerates of up to 120FPS. These include new titles built natively using the Xbox Series X|S development environment as well as recent blockbuster favorites that have been rebuilt specifically to take full advantage of our powerful new hardware.
Gears 5 is also re-releasing today, fully optimized for Xbox Series X|S with reduced load times, 4K HDR Ultra visuals on Series X, 120 frames per second in Versus multiplayer, variable refresh rate, Quick Resume, and features Smart Delivery for players to have the best version on day one. New content is also available for all platforms, including WWE’s Dave Batista now playable as Marcus Fenix in campaign mode, multiplayer skins being available in campaign for all playable characters, new achievements, and next month’s “Hivebusters” campaign DLC.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection has also been optimized and will boost all Halo games to run at 4K 120FPS on the system, along with improved split-screen play and FOV sliders for the most immersive Halo experience yet. Xbox Series X|S owners will also be able to enjoy campaign co-op cross play with friends on Xbox One, as well as input-based competitive matchmaking across both Xbox One and PC. Additional features, updates and new seasonal content for Halo: The Master Chief Collection will be launched throughout 2021, so there’s no better time to join in the Great Journey.
Playground Games’ Forza Horizon 4, which has been enjoyed by over 24 million players since launch, now features higher fidelity graphics and faster performance, allowing players to zip around beautiful, historic Britain and drive hundreds of the world’s greatest cars in native 4K Ultra HD at 60fps on Xbox Series X. Get behind the wheel faster than ever with quick game resume and dramatically improved load times. With Smart Delivery, the Series X update is a free download to all Forza Horizon 4 owners and Game Pass subscribers.
Gears Tactics is also now available on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One with Xbox Game Pass and Smart Delivery. The critically acclaimed fast-paced, turn-based strategy game from the Gears of War franchise has been Optimized for Xbox Series X|S, running at 60 FPS and 4K UHD on Xbox Series X, with enhanced textures, increased world detail and a choice of 60 or 30 frames per second for cinematics. On Xbox Series S, Gears Tactics runs at 60 FPS and 1440p. Xbox Series X|S will feature fast load times and smoother gameplay with the addition of Variable Rate Shading.
The Continued Evolution of Xbox Game Pass with the Addition of EA Play
Xbox Game Pass has fundamentally changed how people play games, and we’re continuing to grow Xbox Game Pass as the best way to discover and play games with family and friends. We want you to experience new ways to play on the console, PC, and your Android mobile device. And to provide the most compelling value in gaming, Xbox Game Pass is the only membership in gaming offering first-party game studio titles day one of launch, so you choose whether to play games as part of your membership or purchase them separately. With Xbox Game Pass, today, Xbox Series X|S owners have the biggest launch day library of games at their fingertips and all of these games load faster and look even more amazing than ever before.
Starting today, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members playing on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S will receive an EA Play membership at no additional cost. Coming December 15, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Game Pass for PC members will also be able to download and play games from The Play List on EA Play on Windows 10 PCs via the EA Desktop app currently in beta. And some of the best EA Play games will also be available for Ultimate members to play on Android devices via the cloud. In addition to the 100+ games in the Xbox Game Pass library today, Ultimate and PC members can play more than 60 of EA’s biggest and best console and PC games like Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, FIFA 20, Titanfall 2 and Need for Speed Heat, as well as titles from some of EA’s most popular franchises like Battlefield, Mass Effect, Skate, and TheSims.
The Most Compatible Next-Gen Consoles Ever
Xbox Series X|S are the only next-generation consoles empowering you to play thousands of games across four generations. Some of the greatest Xbox games of all time look and play best on the new Xbox consoles. We believe that gamers should be able to play all of their games from the past without needing to purchase them again, and they should play better than ever before.
Backwards compatible games run natively with the full performance of the Xbox Series X|S for each and every backward compatible game. This means that all titles run at the peak performance that they were originally designed for, many times even higher performance than the games saw on their original launch platform. These games will look better than ever thanks to improved texture filtering, higher and more consistent frame rates, faster load times and Auto HDR support.
Compatibility is about more than just making sure the games work. It also means being able to bring forward your game saves and progress, your Xbox career and friends, and your Xbox One gaming accessories with you when you upgrade. This process is seamless and straightforward – just pop in your backward-compatible game and go.
Join Us Today in Celebrating the Launch of the Next Generation of Gaming
Today, we invite you to celebrate, connect, and play together. We invite you to grab your device of choice and play alongside Team Xbox, your favorite creators, and our partners, right from your homes around the world. We invite you to take a glimpse behind-the-scenes of the next generation of games, hear the stories of people who make them, and play along with them. We invite you to tune in to our global livestream in celebration of play on today at 11 a.m. PT / 2 p.m. ET on YouTube,Twitch, and Facebook Gaming.
Xbox Series X is available now for $499, while Xbox Series S retails for $299. For the latest on where to buy Xbox Series X|S, visit https://www.xbox.com/en-US/consoles. You can also check in with your local retailer, including Microsoft Store, for more information.
In August, we introduced Humans and AI, a new series of stories that highlight the people who make innovation matter. The series features passionate people from all walks of life who are using AI to transform our society and our world for the better.
Today, we are thrilled to share our next episode of “Humans and AI” featuring Nicolas Villar, a principal hardware architect for Microsoft Premonition, an early warning system that monitors the environment for signs of epidemics. Villar is building robotic devices to capture and track disease-carrying mosquitoes – a threat he understands well after living in places where mosquito-borne illnesses are a daily concern.
Villar’s past projects include Code Jumper, a physical programming language designed to be inclusive of children with all ranges of vision. He considers himself a maker who loves using technology to bring ideas to life to help others and solve problems.
Want to know more about Villar or his work? On Nov. 18, he will be answering your questions live on Twitter in a chat hosted by Microsoft Research. Submit your questions by tagging @MSFTResearch and using #MicrosoftAIChat on Twitter to share your questions ahead of time.
Ransomware is a type of malware that holds computer systems or data hostage with demands for payment. And it has been used against a wide variety of targets, including governments, businesses and health care facilities. Ransomware distributors are also part of a wider web of digital menace that has threatened election security.
In October 2020, the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit worked with a coalition of partners to disrupt Trickbot, one of the most infamous botnets and prolific distributors of ransomware. Botnets are networks of computers infected by malware and being used to commit cybercrimes. While disrupting a botnet is challenging work and success varies over time, Microsoft and its partners were able to disrupt 94% of Trickbot’s critical operational infrastructure in six days.
Jason Lyons is a malware and cloud crime investigator at the Microsoft DCU and part of a team that disrupted Trickbot. We caught up with Jason to find out more about this critical work. Below is an edited version of our conversation.
What is the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit?
I don’t think there’s another organization in private industry with the same structure, components and skill sets. It sits within the Customer Security and Trust team at Microsoft, and it comprises many different jobs and skills, including lawyers and paralegals, cyber analysts, security researchers and investigators, like myself, as well as the engineers who help build the tools we need. We have about 65 people working around the globe – at Microsoft’s Redmond, Washington, headquarters, Asia, Europe and South America.
How do people come to work in the team? What did you do beforehand?
I used to be a special agent in the U.S. Army, doing counterintelligence work. Our investigators come from many different backgrounds. One of my colleagues in DCU was a colonel in the Army, working in the communications sector. Another investigator who joined DCU recently was a computer scientist for the FBI. Another is an attorney. So there are lots of different backgrounds on the team.
Within my team, which is one of about four within the DCU, we carry out about two or three major botnet disruptions – like the Trickbot operation – a year. Then we work with product teams within Microsoft, particularly Microsoft Defender and Office 365, to ensure we’re on top of current threats, as well as tackling any internal security issues. Our goal is to stop the spread of malware and protect our customers and users of the internet.
The DCU tackles the biggest threats in the ecosystem. We primarily focus on those that are having the biggest impact on our customers … or as important to a partner like FS-ISAC [the financial services cyber intelligence sharing body], which represents financial institutions all over the world. Trickbot was brought to our attention because of its antivirus (AV) tampering – once it infects a system, it has the ability to turn off the AV product.
When a case is referred to the DCU, what happens next?
They’re usually brought to us by someone inside our product group saying, “Hey, this is a significant problem for us.” We evaluate the issue, looking at the impact it could have not just on Microsoft but more widely, too. We ask whether there’s infrastructure to disrupt, where the bad guys are located and where they’re hosting their servers – and if we can get a U.S. court order to disrupt them. Or, will we need international partners and possibly international judicial orders, all of which is possible with our global team. Then we investigate how the botnet operates – is there a vulnerability we can exploit to disconnect the criminals from the victim machines and cause a significant disruption?
How are these weaknesses identified?
We build automated systems to dissect the information in the files that the botnet sends out. Then we’ll take it into our malware lab to really find out how it works. We want to know how it infects the operating system and what it does next. What security protocols does it turn off? And we look at how it communicates – probably the most important thing is what the communication between the command and control server and the victim looks like.
We launched our AI for Health program in January to use artificial intelligence (AI) and data to help improve the health of people and communities worldwide. Shortly thereafter, Covid-19 hit us head on and became a global health pandemic that upended the lives of people, communities and economies around the world. Recognizing the global impact of this disease, we mobilized AI for Health in April to focus on helping those on the front lines of Covid-19 research.
Early on, we had no idea the tenacity and duration of the disease. But, as of the time of writing, there have been more than 50 million confirmed cases of Covid-19, and more than 1.25 million deaths globally, according to the World Health Organization. Despite the ongoing efforts of scientists, researchers and policymakers, Covid-19 continues to change and shift the world as we know it.
The Covid-19 crisis has made it painfully clear that health transcends every border, impacting every person on the planet. As such, we want to empower researchers, nonprofits and policymakers with resources including Azure High Performance Computing, Power BI analytics and open datasets from GitHub. Non-profits and health care have less than 5% of global AI resources, so we have made our top data scientists and researchers available to support those on the front lines. Since April, through AI for Health, we’ve awarded over 150 grants to Covid-19 projects around the world.
Our grantees and partners have shared access to Microsoft’s AI technology, and these resources have accelerated the progress made in their research. With large-scale computing and open data, what used to take months can now be done in a matter of days. The rapid progress means researchers can more quickly identify potential solutions to combat Covid-19 and provide timely information to policymakers for data-driven decisions that protect communities, cities and regions. We are proud to support the work that is being done to fight this disease and remain committed in our support.
AI for Health Covid-19 response by the numbers
Through our program, we have seen that 39% of grantee projects are focused on treatment and diagnostics, including UCB and University of California, Riverside. Meanwhile, grantees focused on data and insights, including IHME, Washington State Department of Health and University of Notre Dame, made up 31% of the grants. Some 14% of the projects, such as [email protected], were focused on basic scientific research. The remaining projects, including grantees such as Duke University, were focused on allocation of resources (8%) and dissemination of accurate information (8%) from grantees such as Take.
Highlights from AI for Health Covid-19 response grantees include:
A grassroots employee volunteer effort at Belgian biopharmaceutical company UCB has identified 150 new molecules that could potentially counteract replication of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and aid in drug therapies as part of the Covid-19 Moonshot initiative.
Harnessing GPU-enabled cloud resources, UC Riverside researchers utilize quantum-based methods to more accurately predict the effectiveness of proposed Covid-19 inhibitors. This is one of several Covid-19 projects underway.
IHME, a global health research organization at the University of Washington School of Medicine, forecasts the Covid-19 pandemic, helping governors, hospital administrators and vaccine makers mobilize resources.
University of Notre Dame librarians have created a new way to undertake research by enabling access to curated sets of research literature in the cloud that can also be taken offline for analysis when students and researchers are not on campus due to lockdowns.
[email protected], a distributed computing project at Washington University in St. Louis, is using AI to better understand the relationship between proteins and diseases with a goal of accelerating new therapeutics, including for Covid-19.
Professor Amanda Randles at Duke University is using the power of Azure to conduct hundreds of millions of simulations required to help more patients have access to critical ventilators.
Take, the Brazilian leader in chatbots and the smart contacts market, developed a bot to bring official and credible information to the public and connect potential patients to medical teams to avoid overloading Brazilian hospitals.
We also have incredible partnerships with top organizations that extend our Covid-19 efforts, such as:
Partnering with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s (OSTP) High Performance Computing Consortium to support researchers and academia.
Working with Brown University’s School of Public Health and the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard to visualize a common set of measures on testing and risk levels to help everyone know where we are with the pandemic and help policymakers guide their response. This includes a State Testing Calculator that supports policymakers’ ability to create more nuanced testing and opening strategies while protecting high-risk populations.
Being a founding member of The Trinity Challenge, a coalition of private, academic and social organizations using data and advanced analytics to prevent the next pandemic.
Lastly, by using publicly available information from partners such as USAFacts, we have created a number of interactive visualizations to provide transparency into Covid-19 trends globally.
We also created a unique measure called Progress to Zero to help everyone understand, in simple terms, our progress in reducing Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
In the U.S., we’ve updated the dashboard to show Covid-19 risk levels by congressional districts to help policymakers understand the progress and actions they need to take against the disease.
Our partners and grantees make progress against Covid-19 every day, but there is still much to do to fight the disease. The great work being done by our partners and grantees emboldens us to continue working tirelessly against Covid-19, while also supporting and helping those on the front lines. We are humbled by their incredible efforts and remain committed to supporting researchers and policymakers around the world as they tackle this terrible disease.
In 2016, as the United States emerged from a close and contentious national election, we published a blog on the need to find new ways for the country to move forward together. As we reflected that year on the election of Donald Trump, we started with a straightforward proposition, saying:
“Every president-elect deserves our congratulations, best wishes and support for the country as a whole. The peaceful transition of power has been an enduring and vital part of our democracy for over two centuries, and it remains so today.”
Four years later, these words are no less important. As we did in 2016, we offer today our congratulations to the new President- and Vice-President-Elect: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Election Day this year turned into a very long and tense election week, with many Americans glued to their screens anxiously awaiting the outcome. It has been commonplace to hear pundits speculate that we have seldom seemed such a divided country. If true, this also makes a different proposition even more self-evident. If we are to move forward as a nation, we must build new bridges to close the gaps that divide us.
At Microsoft, we believe that Americans share more common ground than many pundits acknowledge, particularly when it comes to technology issues. On many of these matters, there is an opportunity to separate policies from politics so we can make a real difference in people’s lives. Consider the following:
A clear lesson from Covid-19 is that access to technology has become indispensable in an increasingly digital world. This starts with digital devices, but quickly extends to high-speed internet access. Broadband has become the electricity of the 21st century, vital for everything from patients needing telehealth consultations to children who are attending school from home. Today, too many rural families find there is no broadband service available, while too many underprivileged urban families find no broadband service that is affordable. A nation that would not tolerate millions of Americans living without electricity should no longer accept millions of families without broadband.
Technology-fueled automation increasingly impacts all of our jobs. Digital tools, data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) have the potential to make almost all of us in every job category more successful – but only if we have easier access to the new digital skills that are increasingly indispensable to the jobs of the future. This has become vital for first-line as well as knowledge workers, creating benefits for those in vital positions that range from health care to manufacturing to the nation’s retailers. Yet we enter the 2020s following two decades of declining and then stagnating employer investments in workforce training, and post-secondary education that has left too many students confronting debt without a degree. We need to make digital skills available to everyone.
Across the political spectrum, Americans share not just a commitment to, but a reverence for, democracy. Yet the health of democracy today relies not just on individual acts of voting. It requires constant vigilance and an effective collective defense against cyber-based attacks on candidates and voting systems, and disinformation campaigns against the public itself. At Microsoft, this led us this election cycle to work across the political aisle to protect Republican and Democratic candidates alike. We conclude this election year even more convinced of the importance of using technology to protect not just the democratic process, but our fundamental freedoms. More than ever, we need ongoing technology innovation and stronger partnerships across the public and private sectors to better defend democracy.
During a time when our daily lives rely so heavily on digital devices, trust in technology has become an issue of paramount importance. People of all political backgrounds care deeply about the privacy of their data and the security of their internet services. The questions around trust in technology continue to become even more multifaceted, now also including digital safety and responsible practices for AI. Yet we continue to live with a national electronic privacy law enacted in the dial-up era of the 1980s, and when it comes to issues such as safeguards for facial recognition, we have no national law at all. We need new laws fit for the future.
Regardless of political party, people want our economy to prosper. The 20th century saw technology innovation not just spur productivity growth but spread its benefits broadly – to every state and to most industries, creating the foundation for a broadening middle class. As a company that provides so many productivity and other digital services for businesses of all sizes, we have a clear window into the need for a new and similar wave of broader productivity growth. We believe that technology innovation needs to create more business opportunities for every part of the economy as well as ushering in a new era for enhanced public sector services and efficiencies.
When we consider all these issues, it is apparent that there are opportunities to build new bridges between us and to strengthen the ties that bind us in common purpose. All these challenges are ripe for bipartisan collaboration and for government and industry cooperation.
This opportunity to build new bridges extends to the international arena as well. We live in a decade that has started with a virus that respects no border and carbon that moves in the atmosphere not just from country to country, but from continent to continent. More and more of the issues of our day require stronger collaboration between the United States and the rest of the world.
None of this means that the differences that divide Americans are unimportant. We live with different views on many fundamental issues. As a company, we have not shied away from controversies that we care about, whether they involve racial equity, immigration or climate change. Under each of the last two American presidents, we found that we were served best by efforts to partner where we can, while standing apart where we should. And we will continue with this approach.
Along the way, we have learned that we have far more opportunities to partner across the political spectrum than most people recognize. But we need to move from debates about why we cannot succeed to conversations about how we can. The more bridges we can cross together, the more we likely will find that Americans of all backgrounds in every state and county share far more in common than we currently appreciate.
As we look to the next four years, this should give us not only reason for hope, but cause for optimism.
Presents, décor, food, and more all seem to add up faster during the holidays. With a few tricks, you can get what you need, while spending less.
You can easily compare the price of a product you want across retailers now with a single click, using price comparison in Microsoft Edge. Use it for your holiday shopping list to save you money as you shop. Try it out today by Creating a collection and adding a product to it. When you click “compare price to other retailers,” you’ll see a list of prices of that item across other retailers along with direct links to their pages so you can easily complete your purchase.
Find cash-back deals from participating merchants easily—right from the Microsoft Bing search results page. You no longer have to look for cash-back offers across multiple websites; now, when you search for products, brands or categories, you’ll see great Bing Rebates offers right in the Bing search results.
See all cash-back deals, including the latest deals when you sign in with your Microsoft Account here. You can also stay up to date on price drops and rebates by using Bing while shopping online. You can even get loyalty points back!
If you want to track the money you are spending, it’s time to discover an easier way to manage your finances. Money in Excel is a dynamic, smart template and add-in for Microsoft Excel that allows you to securely connect your bank, credit card, investment, and loan accounts to Excel and automatically import your transaction and account information into a spreadsheet.
Write down your thoughts
While the holiday season can be merry and festive, it’s also a time of reflection and can sometimes start to feel dark and lonely. If you begin to feel overwhelmed, writing your thoughts and feelings in a journal may help.
A journal is great for organizing whatever’s on your mind. You can use it to understand and express your emotions or to keep track of your daily to-do list. Motivational quotes and gratitude lists are also good for staying energized and grateful during periods of stress.
To be consistent with your journaling habit, use habit-stacking to associate it with something you do every day.
For example, you can journal your plan for the day while drinking your morning coffee or eating breakfast. At night, try journaling after you brush your teeth and climb into bed.
Connect with others
You might not be able to meet in person, but you can still get in touch. To keep the holiday spirit going, use Meet Now to stream a virtual holiday dinner, candle lighting, or opening your holiday gifts.
Discover new ways to fuel your mind and body
The holidays are about coming together, but sometimes you just need time to yourself. If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription or have been meaning to get one, don’t forget to make use of the unique partner benefits included in your subscription:
Headspace: Learn how to stress less, move more, and sleep soundly with Headspace and guided meditation.
Blinkist: Learn anytime, anywhere. Get 15-minute audio bits from over 4,000 top nonfiction titles.
eMeals: Get inspired for weeknight meals or special holiday dinners with recipes that range from kid-friendly to Keto, budget friendly and vegan. eMeals even provides options to save time through easy shopping list creation and options for grocery delivery services.
Presents, travel plans, in-laws? Stress and anxiety can be an unwelcome visitor during the holidays. However, if you add these tips into your routine, you’re on your way to managing and maintaining your mental health better for a more relaxed holiday season.
*Calls up to 24 hours each, but just call back to start a new call and keep talking!
Next week, gamers around the world will be able to jump into the next generation of gaming with the release of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. We’re very excited about the launch of our latest and greatest consoles, and used it as an excuse for celebrations, both live and virtual, around the globe. Don’t have that new console yet? Not to worry – you won’t need one to join us as we kick off the next generation in style!
Global Celebration Livestream
The biggest of our launch day events is our official livestream, which gives us an opportunity to celebrate and connect with our fans by doing what we all love to do: play games. On November 10, we’re inviting all Xbox fans around the world to celebrate, connect, and play together. So grab your device of choice and play alongside Team Xbox, your favorite creators, and our partners, right from your homes around the world. You’ll get to take a closer look at the next generation of games, hear the stories of people who make them, and play along with them.
We invite you to tune in to our global livestream in celebration of play on November 10 at 11 a.m. PT / 2 p.m. ET on YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook Gaming.
During the livestream, you’ll see more on lots of next-generation games, includingGears Tactics, Gears 5, Destiny 2, Forza Horizon 4, Watch Dogs: Legion, Tetris Effect Connected, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, The Falconeer, Grounded, The Medium, Dirt5, Halo MCC, Bright Memory, and Scarlet Nexus.
We’ll also be highlighting some of the member of the Xbox community, with testimonials from Xbox Ambassadors, MVPs, Xbox FanFest attendees, and our very own Team Xbox members about what this moment means to them.
Cyberpunk 2077 fans won’t want to miss Johnny Silverhand’s induction into the Xbox Walk of Fame. To celebrate the occasion, viewers will be able to control a 20-foot replica of Johnny’s iconic Silverhand live during the stream, using nothing but emojis.
Want to look fresh in some new gear? We’ll be sharing a first look at our new Xbox Gear Launch Collection, complete with timed discounts, exclusive products, and free gear drops. We’ll also be highlighting partners such as Taco Bell, Monster Energy Drink, Samsung, and the Foot Locker family of brands .
We’ve also got a special treat for fans who attend our virtual FanFest. Login or Register as an Xbox FanFest fan at https://www.xbox.com/fanfest and opt-in for a chance to win exclusive prizing such as a custom Xbox Series X Fridge, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
During the livestream, we’re partnering with our friends at Make-A-Wish® International to support communities around the world through Softgiving™. We’re bringing back #GiveWithXbox, and starting at 11 a.m. PT / 2 p.m. ET on November 10, every donation made to Make-A-Wish International during the livestream will automatically enter them for a chance to win a Game Pass Ultimate 3-month subscription or one of three HyperX Cloud Alpha headsets. For more information and to join in giving back to families, please visit the event donation page.
Finally, while we can’t be together in person, we will bring our fans together virtually. Fans will upload a selfie to create our launch fan mosaic, with the final image being revealed during the livestream.
Xbox Launch Celebrations Around the World
In addition to the global launch livestream, we’ll also have a number of events kicking off around the globe that fans can participate in. These include:
New Zealand: Due to international time zones, New Zealand will be the first country to globally celebrate the launch of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. Xbox ANZ is hosting a livestream countdown for its fans on both sides of the Tasman in Australia and New Zealand, as well as across the world. The live event will begin at 11 p.m. NZDT on November 9 and continue through midnight to officially usher in the next generation of gaming. An official Xbox takeover will also take place during the stream, where Queenstown will be transformed into ‘Greenstown’ to officially launch the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series S. Fans can tune in via Xbox ANZ’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Twitch.
France: On November 9, Xbox France will host a local livestream event, Xbox Dream Live. From 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. CET there will be a celebration with the community on Xbox France’s Twitch and Twitter, including Q&A, contest for prizes, and more. From 8:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. CET on November 10, the Xbox team will celebrate the new generation of gaming with takeovers from game streamers and entertaining activations.
Germany: Xbox Germany will celebrate the launch of Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S with the Xbox Dream Stream event on November 9 at 7 p.m. CET on Xbox Germany’s Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and YouTube. Join the digital party with the local German, Swiss and Austrian gaming communities to celebrate the transition into the next gen with a spectacular livestream full of highlights and surprises.
Sweden: Xbox Sverige (Sweden) invites the world to tune in at 8 p.m. CET to Xbox Sverige: Launch Night Live as we bring a show packed full of content to celebrate the arrival of Xbox Series X and S. In partnership with DreamHack and Elgiganten, along with a roster of other amazing partners, the stream will serve to showcase every part of the next generation of Xbox gaming – from console, to PC and Mobile. Additionally, viewers are invited to preview games that are playable at launch, along with some special guests throughout the show. Be sure to tune in for all this and some exciting prizes to be won.
UK: At 6 p.m. GMT on November 9, Xbox UK and Xbox On will host a six-hour livestream, counting down to launch at midnight. Viewers are invited to preview games that are playable at launch, complete live interactive challenges, all while experiencing a spectacular installation that will be featured throughout the show. The rooftop display, set against the backdrop of London’s iconic skyline, will feature a countdown that will begin two minutes before midnight and includes a holographic installation to showcase the innovative features of the Xbox Series X.
Brazil: The Next Gen is Now two-hour streaming event will begin at 5 p.m. BRT on November 9. Catering to the local Xbox community in Brazil, the livestream is hoping to engage tech enthusiasts as well as casual and hardcore gamers of the like. Attendees will have the chance to interact with the stream in real time and decide what will be shown, whether it be an unboxing, gameplay with content creators, trailers (Cyberpunk 2077 & Assassin’s Creed Valhalla) or an extended view of the new console features for the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
Mexico: Xbox Mexico will welcome the next generation of Xbox gaming during a live stream event on November 9 at 7 p.m. CST. This digital event has been inspired by the dreams of the Mexican community and will be packed with great surprises, fun dynamics, important announcements, and appearances from influential gaming opinion leaders and content creators throughout the country.
Canada: In Toronto Ontario, Xbox Canada will usher in the Xbox Series X as we Power Your Dreams through a showcase of local artists’ dream interpretations depicted on a 40 ft console floating in the Toronto Harbour on November 9 and 10, in a nod to the iconic Xbox Series X reveal from last year’s Game Awards. Stay tuned to @XboxCanada and @Xbox for more information.
United States: A mysterious 40 ft monolith appearing in the dreamlike landscape of Washington State USA, in a nod to the recent Xbox Power your Dreams campaign creative. It will feature local artist’s dream-work imagery. The structure and it’s ever-changing content will be featured in companion streams, social content and giveaways hidden throughout the day. We will also make select artwork available to fans digitally following launch. Stay tuned to @Xbox for more information.
Tune in to the global livestream in celebration of play on November 10 at 11 a.m. PT / 2 p.m. ET on YouTube,Twitch, and Facebook Gaming.
We know our players love to catch up on the latest shows or listen to their favorite artists on their Xbox consoles when they aren’t gaming. At Xbox, our goal is to make the transition from playing games and streaming media on Xbox One to Xbox Series X|S as seamless as possible, so that you’re not missing out on the content you love when you jump into the next generation of gaming.
Just as we’re bringing forward all the games that play on Xbox One* today, we’re excited to announce that your favorite entertainment apps you enjoy today on Xbox One will be available on Xbox Series X and Series S. That means your favorite streaming apps like Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, Spotify, YouTube, YouTube TV, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, NBC Peacock, Vudu, FandangoNow, Twitch, Sky Go, NOW TV, Sky Ticket and more, will be waiting for you when you boot your new Xbox console on November 10.
Apple TV is coming to Xbox Consoles
When our all-new Xbox family of consoles launch worldwide on November 10, you’ll have more than just the entertainment apps you enjoy today on Xbox One. We’re excited to share that the Apple TV app is coming to Xbox One and Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S on November 10.
The Apple TV app gives you access to thousands of shows and movies from one convenient location, allowing you to enjoy Apple TV+, Apple TV channels, brand-new and popular movies, and personalized entertainment recommendations.
Apple TV+ is your home for Apple Originals — award-winning shows, premiere movies, and stunning documentaries — from the world’s most creative storytellers.
Binge your heart out with hilarious, heartfelt and powerful shows like Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet, Ted Lasso, The Morning Show, See, Servant and Tehran. Grab your popcorn for movie night featuring Tom Hanks in Greyhound or the documentary Beastie Boys Story.
There’s so much more available on the Apple TV app. You can also subscribe to channels like Showtime, CBS All Access and AMC+. You can browse to buy or rent more than 100,000 movies and shows, with access to your library of previous movie and TV show purchases from Apple. You can watch online, ad-free and on demand through the app. In addition, Family Sharing lets six family members share subscriptions to Apple TV channels using their personal Apple ID and password.
If you’re ready to dive in, you can subscribe to Apple TV+ on the Apple TV app directly from your Xbox for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial starting November 10.See here for more details on everything Apple TV has to offer.
Watch like never before
It’s not just your games that play better than ever before on our new consoles, your favorite movies and shows are about to sound and look more immersive on Xbox Series X and Series S.
With our new consoles, immerse yourself with fuller colors, enhanced dynamic range, and spatial sound just as the filmmakers and creators intended on Xbox Series X|S with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, which are supported on apps like Netflix, Disney+, and Vudu. Together, these advanced audiovisual technologies will take your favorite entertainment to new heights through ultravivid picture quality – incredible brightness, contrast, color, and detail – alongside immersive moving audio that will transport you to new worlds.
It’s never been easier to browse the hundreds of entertainment apps available with the new Microsoft Store on Xbox, which was rebuilt with your feedback in mind. The Microsoft Store is twice as fast as before. We’ve cut the launch time of the Microsoft Store app to about two seconds so you can find your next favorite game, app, or movie easier than ever. As a reminder, you can access your apps in the refreshed Xbox dashboard experience (UX) in the My Games & Apps.
We also recently introduced a new Entertainment block for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S that showcases the latest content in movies, TV, and music across popular entertainment apps. For new Xbox owners, the Entertainment block is automatically pinned to Home. Existing gamers can scroll down to Add more > See all suggestions, select Entertainment, and add it to Home.
Eight days to go until you can experience everything we have in store for the next generation of gaming.
*Except for a handful of titles that require Kinect
