Microsoft has made several high-profile announcements on the first day of its annual Build conference in Seattle. This year's developer conference, in particular, focused on artificial intelligence (AI), intelligent cloud, Mixed reality, and improving cross-platform experiences. Here's a look at a few of the biggest announcements from Microsoft's annual Build developer conference. Build 2018 will run from May 7 to May 8 in Seattle. Build 2018: 700 million devices now run Windows 10 At its Build developer conference, Microsoft announced that "nearly" 700 million devices now run Windows 10 - the company's latest operating system. Almost a year back, the company said that there were 500 million active devices. The figure is encouraging but is far from reaching the 1 billion mark by 2018. In addition, the company also announced that Office 365 now has 135 million monthly active users, up from 120 million users. Build 2018: A renewed focus on phones Microsoft may not be making smartphones anymore, but it says the focus has been on phones. Perhaps why it has launched a new "Your Phone'" for Windows 10 at its Build 2018 developer conference. So essentially, the app is designed to mirror your phone to the PC. The idea behind the app is to access the phones' content - be it text messages, notifications, or photos - right on Windows 10-powered desktop or laptop. Microsoft says it will start testing its 'Your Phone' app with Windows Insiders in May 2018. Also read: Google I/O 2018: Android P, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to be focus Build 2018: Alexa and Cortana integration After it announced a partnership with Amazon last year, Microsoft showed off how its Cortana digital assistant will integrate with Alexa. This integration simply means that Amazon Alexa users will be able to access Cortana and Cortana users will get access Alexa. No #SeattleFreeze here: Tom Taylor, SVP of Amazon Alexa and Megan Saunders, GM of Cortana are on stage at #MSBuild showing off our digital assistants’ intelligent friendship. #MSBuild pic.twitter.com/yhuNKSv425 — Microsoft (@Microsoft) May 7, 2018 At Build 2018, Microsoft demonstrated the two digital assistants working with each other. Each assistant is good at different things and the Cortana Alexa integration will benefit users at the end of the day. Build 2018: Mixed reality to get collaborative features Microsoft's Mixed reality is getting new features that will allow users to collaborate at work. The first feature is Remote Assist through which customers can collaborate remotely with heads-up, hands-free video calling, and image sharing. #MSBuild is famous for exciting announcements, and this year is no different. First up, @LorraineBardeen has some news about two brand new #MixedReality apps for HoloLens that are going to transform the modern workplace. — Microsoft HoloLens (@HoloLens) May 7, 2018 The other feature, Microsoft Layout, lets customers design spaces in mixed reality. They can create 3-D models to create room layouts in real-world scale, experience designs as high-quality holograms in physical space, and then share and edit with stakeholders in real time. Microsoft says both features will be first available to businesses and frontline workers. Also read: Microsoft Build 2018: AI, intelligent cloud will create new opportunities for developers Build 2018: DJI partnership At its Build developer conference, Microsoft announced that DJI, the world's most popular drone maker, has partnered with the Redmond-based company to create a new SDK for Windows 10 PCs. We're partnering with @DJIGlobal to bring Azure IoT to their drones, including the #MavicAir, to execute tasks that are dirty, dangerous, or just dull. #MSBuild — Microsoft (@Microsoft) May 7, 2018 The SDK will bring full flight control and real-time data transfer to all Windows 10 connected devices. It also announced that DJI has selected Azure as its preferred cloud provider to further its commercial drone and SaaS solutions. Build 2018: Project Kinect for Azure Microsoft is bringing Kinect back, and this time for AI developers. At the annual developer conference, Microsoft announced Project Kinect for Azure. The company says the new Kinect will come with a package of sensors and the next-generation depth camera, designed for AI on the Edge. Introducing Project Kinect for Azure, the most powerful sensor kit with spatial human and object understanding. #MSBuild pic.twitter.com/k1UxoGhtXs — Microsoft (@Microsoft) May 7, 2018 "Project Kinect for Azure unlocks countless new opportunities to take advantage of Machine Learning, Cognitive Services, and IoT Edge", Microsoft's Alex Kipman explained in a blog post on Linkedin. Kinect was launched as a motion controller for the Xbox 360, in 2010. In its initial days, it struggled to captivate consumer attention and, later Microsoft announced a Windows version of Kinect. The Xbox One also got the Kinect support, but last year Microsoft decided to discontinue the accessory.
