by Andrew Smith, General Manager, Worldwide Partner Programs
Your voice continues to shape how the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program evolves. In this update, we’re bringing together the announcements, investments, and resources that matter most to partners right now. From the innovations unveiled at Microsoft Ignite to updates across benefits, Azure, AI business solutions, Marketplace, security, and skilling, this edition is designed to build capability, accelerate execution, and drive meaningful customer impact as AI becomes central to every workload.
What follows highlights our focus and areas of partner opportunity, grounded in feedback from across the ecosystem and aligned to how customers are evolving their cloud and AI strategies.
Spotlight
Microsoft Ignite marked an important evolution for the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program, introducing new investments for partners to lead as Frontier Firms, translating their own AI experience into customer impact. Read Nicole Dezen’s blog for a partner-focused recap of Microsoft Ignite 2025, bringing together the announcements that matter most across AI, cloud platforms, security, and developer tools.