Microsoft Ignite 2025 AI announcements: What software developers need to know
Igniting what’s next: What software development companies need to know about Microsoft’s AI announcements at Ignite 2025 The AI landscape took a major leap forward at Microsoft Ignite 2025, and for software development companies and digital natives, the announcements represent a massive opportunity: faster innovation, simplified agent development, access to enterprise‑ready AI platforms, and a dramatically expanded ecosystem to build on. This year, Microsoft introduced the era of agentic AI—and software companies are at the center of this shift. Ignite 2025 formally unveiled Microsoft Foundry, our unified platform for building, governing, and scaling intelligent agents. From new agent runtimes to multi‑agent orchestration, enterprise‑grade knowledge access, and one‑click publishing to Microsoft 365, the momentum creates one clear signal: 💡 AI assistants are becoming intelligent agents—and Foundry is the platform software companies will use to build them. Why Microsoft Ignite 2025 mattered for software companies Across every session, Microsoft doubled down on helping partners accelerate time‑to‑market with agentic AI solutions. Whether you’re building vertical apps, automation copilots, knowledge systems, or developer tools, the new capabilities in Foundry eliminate much of the heavy lifting associated with retrieval, orchestration, compliance, hosting, and model selection. Key themes this year from Azure AI: Unified agent platform across all Microsoft clouds Framework‑agnostic development (bring your own models, tools, or frameworks) Enterprise‑grade governance built into the lifecycle Open ecosystem and interoperability using MCP, A2A, OpenAPI Seamless distribution through Microsoft 365 and Teams Let’s break down what’s new—and what it means for your product strategy. Top announcements for software companies at Ignite 2025 Microsoft Foundry: A unified brand for AI agent development Azure AI Foundry is now Microsoft Foundry—a consolidated platform for building, deploying, and managing intelligent agents. For software companies, this means: One consistent developer experience Shared governance and compliance across products A more integrated ecosystem for publishing and distributing agentic solutions This rebrand isn’t cosmetic—it reflects Microsoft’s strategic shift to deliver a platform built explicitly for the next generation of AI agents. Introducing Foundry IQ: Your enterprise knowledge engine One of the most exciting announcements is Foundry IQ, a new engine that gives agents instant access to enterprise data from SharePoint, OneLake, ADLS, and the web, all governed by Purview. For software companies, this unlocks: Reliable, production‑grade knowledge retrieval without building RAG pipelines Consistent compliance and security models Faster customer onboarding with fewer integration gaps Foundry IQ is a game‑changer for teams who have spent months building retrieval layers or maintaining custom RAG components. Foundry Control Plane: Unified governance for all agents Now in public preview, the Foundry Control Plane enables teams to manage agents across frameworks, clouds, and environments. Highlights: Unified visibility and observability Built‑in security & compliance (Defender, Purview) Fleet‑wide monitoring for cost, health, and risk For software companies offering multi‑tenant solutions or operating in regulated industries, this dramatically simplifies the operational burden of managing AI agents. Agent Framework (public preview): SK + AutoGen, Unified The Microsoft Agent Framework, now in public preview, merges the strengths of Semantic Kernel and AutoGen into a single SDK for building durable, interoperable agents. Software companies gain: A consistent programming model Durable memory Strong interoperability with MCP, A2A, OpenAPI Framework‑agnostic design This is the developer foundation for future AI applications built on Microsoft clouds. Hosted Agents: Enterprise‑grade runtime, no infrastructure needed With Hosted Agents, teams can deploy custom‑code agents directly into a fully managed runtime—no containers, pipelines, or infra setup. What this enables for software companies: Faster deployment cycles Secure, autoscaling environments Simple onboarding for customer‑specific agents Observability and monitoring built in This drastically reduces the operational overhead many software companies face today. Multi‑agent workflows & connected intelligence Ignite 2025 introduced major advancements in multi‑agent orchestration: Built‑in memory across sessions A catalog of 1,000+ Microsoft & partner tools (with private catalogs for software companies) Visual and programmatic orchestration tools Enterprise‑ready coordination for long‑running workflows Foundry IQ for instant knowledge access This allows software companies to design more autonomous, intelligent, and interconnected systems—moving beyond assistants toward true digital workers. Model Router GA + Anthropic partnership expansion There are two major updates for model flexibility: Model Router GA Now supporting 11,000+ models, the router helps developers intelligently choose the best model for each task, optimizing both cost and performance. Anthropic Claude models in Foundry Claude Sonnet 4.5, Opus 4.1, and Haiku 4.5 are now integrated into Microsoft Foundry through an expanded partnership with Anthropic. This gives software companies more choice, capability, and model‑agnostic development paths. One‑click publishing to Microsoft 365 & Teams One of the biggest wins for software companies: Agents built in Foundry can now be published to Microsoft 365 and Teams Chat with one click. This means: Access to hundreds of millions of users Unified governance through Microsoft Admin Center Seamless integration with Copilot experiences For software companies, this is a massive new distribution channel. Why this matters for software development companies Ignite 2025 didn’t just introduce new products—it signaled a platform shift. software companies now have: A full-stack platform for agentic applications - From data access to orchestration, hosting, deployment, and compliance. A unified runtime and SDK - Reducing fragmentation and speeding up development cycles. Enterprise reach through Microsoft 365 - Making your agents as discoverable as apps. A rapidly expanding ecosystem - More models, more tools, more integration points. If you’re building AI-powered products, this is your moment. Get hands-on: Sessions & resources for software companies Here are links to top Ignite sessions to dive deeper. Build & Manage AI Apps with Your Agent Factory AI Agents in Azure AI Foundry: Ship Fast, Scale Fearlessly AI‑Powered Automation & Multi‑Agent Orchestration Agent Developer Guide for Foundry Agent Service The Future of RAG with Agentic Retrieval & AI Search What’s next: December Foundry Council Session Join us on Dec 18 for the Ignite Recap session through the Foundry Partner Council. It’s the best opportunity for software companies to: Get deeper into the new capabilities Share partner/DN feedback Join focus groups For more information about the December 18 session, contact foundrycouncil@microsoft.com or visit aka.ms/foundrycouncilDecember edition of Microsoft Marketplace Partner Digest
Microsoft Ignite 2025 - Marketplace highlights Microsoft Ignite was packed with announcements and insights for Marketplace partners. From new commerce capabilities to AI-driven innovations, here are some key takeaways: Global expansion of Microsoft Marketplace - Microsoft announced that the reimagined Microsoft Marketplace, which launched in the U.S. earlier this year, is now globally available. This expansion includes new APIs for distribution partners, enabling them to link their own cloud marketplace with Microsoft’s, opening significant opportunities for software companies in SMB and mid-market segments. 🎬 Watch a recorded webinar with TD SYNNEX on the power of distribution to accelerate SMB marketplace sales. Global availability of Resale Enabled Offers - This capability allows software development companies to and channel partners to resell software solutions directly through Marketplace, simplifying transactions, expanding reach, and scaling revenue. 👉 Read more about this announcement and get started Introducing App Accelerate - A unified offer that brings together incentives, benefits, and co-sell support across the Microsoft Cloud. App Accelerate provides end-to-end technical guidance, developer tools, and go-to-market resources so software development companies can innovate and scale. Previews are beginning now, with full availability planned for 2026. ✅ Sign up to receive updates Enhanced Partner Marketing Center - Discover, customize, and launch campaigns faster with intelligent search and AI-powered tools—all on one connected platform. The current Partner Marketing Center will remain available as the new and enhanced Marketing Center platform launches in early 2026 with 24 campaigns-in-a-box, aligned to FY26 solution plays. ✨ Get ready for the new era of partner marketing Frontier Partner badge – New customer-facing badges recognize top services, channel, and software development company partners that are driving AI transformation with customers and offer them an opportunity to differentiate themselves from the competition. 🛡️Differentiate your AI-first leadership Catch up on Microsoft Ignite sessions Ignite 2025 delivered powerful insights and announcements for Marketplace partners, and now you can catch up on the sessions you missed. Explore these recorded keynotes to learn about new capabilities, partner programs, and strategies to accelerate growth through Microsoft’s ecosystem. Ignite opening keynote Ignite partner keynote: Powering Frontier Partnerships Additionally, we’ve compiled recordings of relevant Marketplace partner and customer sessions so you can watch on-demand. Revisit Marketplace-focused sessions and resources. Just look for the ✨ icon below. Partner sessions: PBRK415 Grow your business with Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program Find out how the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program helps you grow with new benefits, designations, and skilling opportunities. This session covers updates like the Frontier Partner Badge, Copilot specialization, and streamlined Marketplace engagement—all designed to accelerate your AI transformation journey. PBRK416 Accelerate Growth through Partner Incentives Explore how Microsoft is boosting partner growth with streamlined incentives, AI-first strategies, and new designations like Frontier Distributor. This session covers expanded investments in Azure Accelerate, Copilot solutions, and security practices—plus insights on how to capitalize on evolving programs and co-sell opportunities. PBRK417 Partner: Connect, Plan, Win – Enhancing Co-sell Engagement Discover how to enhance collaboration, optimize joint efforts, and drive success in shared initiatives. Gain insights into improving interactions with Microsoft sellers and leveraging opportunities, along with guidance on proactive co-selling to align your goals with Microsoft's for sustained growth. PBRK418 Partner: Benefits for Accelerating Software Company Success Learn about the resources and benefits available for software development companies across all stages of the build, publish and grow journey in MAICPP. Whether you’re developing a new agent solution or working toward a certified software designation, there are targeted skilling opportunities, technical resources, and GTM benefits to help. Tap into new investments for AI apps and agents and hear from your peers on how they’ve used rewards such as customer propensity scores and Azure sponsorship. PBRK419 SI & Advisory Partner Readiness: Accelerating the Journey to Frontier Understand how Microsoft is empowering our SI and advisory partners to accelerate frontier firm readiness for our Enterprise customers by driving AI transformation with agentic solutions and services. ✨PBRK420 Executing on the channel-led marketplace opportunity for partners See how Microsoft’s unified Marketplace drives partner growth with resale-enabled offers, creating scalable channel sales and co-sell opportunities. This session shares practical steps to build a sustainable Marketplace practice and leverage the partner ecosystem for greater reach and profitability. PBRK421 Enabling a thriving partner ecosystem: New CSP Authorization Criteria Dive into what’s new for Cloud Solution Providers, including updated authorization requirements and designations that help you stand out. This session covers steps to choose the right tier, build trust as a customer advisor, and prepare for growth with AI-driven solutions and Copilot offerings. PBRK422 The Future of Partner Support: Customer + Partner + Microsoft Discover ‘Unified for Partners,’ Microsoft’s new support model designed for CSP partners to deliver customer success at scale. This session introduces the Support Services designation, offering faster response times, financial incentives, and integrated tools to strengthen your support capabilities. PBRK423 Partner Execution at Scale with SME&C Explore growth opportunities in the high-potential SME&C segment. This session highlights investments in co-selling, AI-first strategies, and what it means to become ‘customer zero,’ with examples of frontier firms driving innovation at scale. ✨PBRK424 Marketplace Success for Partners—from SMB to Enterprise Learn how to build, publish, and monetize AI-powered solutions through Microsoft Marketplace. This session shares a proven approach to align your Marketplace strategy with your sales motion and unlock new revenue opportunities. PBRK272 Accelerate Secure AI: Microsoft’s Security Advantage for Partners Explore Microsoft’s integrated security solutions and learn how to help customers strengthen their defenses in the AI era. This session highlights partner opportunities, resources to grow your security practice, and what it takes to lead as a next-generation security partner. Customer Sessions: ✨Microsoft Marketplace: Your trusted source for cloud solutions, AI apps, and agents | STUDIO47 Hear from Cyril Belikoff, VP of Commercial Cloud & AI Marketing, sharing the reimagined Microsoft Marketplace—the gateway to thousands of AI-powered apps, agents and cloud solutions—all built to accelerate innovation and drive business outcomes. Discover how customers benefit from faster deployment, seamless integration with Microsoft tools, and trusted solutions, and how partners can scale their reach, accelerate sales, and tap into Microsoft’s global ecosystem. Azure Accelerate in action: Confidently migrate, modernize, and build faster Join Cyril Belikoff for a rapid Q&A that spotlights real-world customer success and the transformative impact of Azure Accelerate. Hear how customers like Thomson Reuters achieved breakthrough results with our powerful offering that provides access to Microsoft experts and investments throughout your Azure and AI journey. ✨BRK213 Microsoft Marketplace: Your trusted source for cloud and AI solutions Discover how the reimagined Microsoft Marketplace is reshaping the future of cloud and AI innovation. In this session, we’ll explore how Microsoft Marketplace—unifying Azure Marketplace and Microsoft AppSource—empowers organizations to become Frontier Firms by streamlining the discovery, purchase, and deployment of tens of thousands of cloud solutions, AI apps, and agents. ✨BRK215 Boost cloud and AI ROI using Microsoft Marketplace As organizations embrace an AI-first future, cloud adoption is accelerating to drive innovation and efficiency. This session explores practical strategies to optimize cloud investments—balancing performance, scalability, and cost control. Learn how Microsoft Marketplace enables rapid solution deployment while maintaining governance, compliance, and budget discipline. Build a resilient, cost-effective cloud foundation that supports AI and beyond. Community Recap Partner of the Year Award Winners Congratulations to the winners and finalists of the 2025 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards in the Marketplace category! 🏆 Explore all winners and finalists Fivetran earned the top honor as Marketplace Partner of the Year for its innovation in automating data movement on Microsoft Azure, enabling enterprises to accelerate AI and analytics initiatives. Varonis Systems Inc. and Bytes Software Services were recognized as finalists for delivering exceptional solutions and driving customer success through Marketplace. What’s Coming Up AI-powered acceleration: Scale faster in Microsoft Marketplace 📆 Thursday, December 04, 2025, at 9:00 AM PST Microsoft Marketplace is no longer just a procurement convenience; it’s a strategic revenue engine. Dive into operational readiness, CRM-native automation, seller engagement, trust signals, and AI-enabled acceleration. Whether you're just getting started or looking to optimize your Marketplace motion, this session will provide you with information that will turn your first sale into a repeatable growth engine. Scale smarter: Discover how resale enabled offers drive growth 📆 Friday, December 05, 2025, from 11:00 - 12:00 PM GTM+1 Discover how resale enabled offers help software development companies to scale through the Microsoft Marketplace by simplifying transactions, expanding reach and accelerating co-sell opportunities. Chart your AI app and agent strategy with Microsoft Marketplace 📆 Thursday, December 11, 2025, from 8:30 - 9:30 AM PST Organizations exploring AI apps and agents face a critical choice: build, buy, or blend. There’s no one-size-fits-all—each approach offers unique benefits and trade-offs. Tune in for insights into the pros and cons of each approach and explore how the Microsoft Marketplace simplifies adoption by providing a single source for trusted AI apps, agents, and models. Office hours for partners: Marketplace resale-enabled offers 📆 Thursday, December 18, 2025, at 8:30 AM PST Tune in to explore resale enabled offers through Microsoft Marketplace. This recently announced capability enables software companies to expand into new markets globally, at scale, and without additional operational overhead. Dive deep into the workflow and requirements for these deals. Learn about reporting and best practices from those that are already selling globally with resale enabled offers. Microsoft Ignite will return to San Francisco next year 📆 November 17-20, 2026 Sign up now to join the Microsoft Ignite early-access list and be eligible to receive limited‑edition swag at the event. 💬 Share Your Feedback! We truly appreciate your feedback and want to ensure these Partner Digests deliver the information you need to succeed in the marketplace. If you have any feedback or suggestions on how we can continue to improve the content to best support you, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below!How we talk about the value of Microsoft Marketplace with customers
At Microsoft Ignite 2025, we introduced the reimagined Microsoft Marketplace to our customers as your trusted source for cloud solutions, AI apps, and agents. This brief, 20-minute breakout session talked about how Marketplace is empowering organizations to become Frontier Firms by streamlining the discovery, purchase, and deployment of tens of thousands of partner solutions. You can watch the session on the Ignite site or on YouTube and read the synopsis below to see how our team pitches Marketplace to our shared customers. We encourage you to provide this and our other customer-focused session on cost optimization to your customers! They can watch a Marketplace demo and learn more at Microsoft.com/Marketplace. BRK213 Microsoft Marketplace: Your trusted source for cloud and AI solutions How Microsoft Marketplace empower the shift to AI-first Frontier Firms are leading the shift to AI-first. Microsoft Marketplace, as an extension of the Microsoft Cloud, is empowering this Frontier transformation by connecting our customers to our partner ecosystem. Marketplace is unique in that customers can discover and purchase solutions in our storefront, in Microsoft products, and through distributed marketplaces through channel partners. Marketplace offers the largest catalog of AI apps and agents in the industry (4,000+ and growing), including so many of the leading innovators in this category. We’re seeing incredible momentum with customers adopting Marketplace: 2X+ sales growth again this year, 75% increase in average spend, and ~2X increase in AI solutions purchased. Microsoft Marketplace value AI apps and agents for every use case Marketplace allows you to choose thousands of AI apps and agents that match your scenario and stack, which simplifies deployment and decreases time-to-value. When you need to ground your AI solution, Marketplace has more than 11,000 models to choose from to ensure you get fast, relevant, and accurate context. You have confidence that solutions integrate natively so that employees can get what they need in the flow of work when using Microsoft products. Comprehensive catalog across cloud solutions and industries As organizations transition to becoming Frontier Firms, it fuels more cloud adoption. Marketplace has the most comprehensive catalog of solutions. Additionally, there are a host of business applications that meet exact needs in functions like HR, legal, and project management. You can access everything from Microsoft – a business partner you know and trust. Solutions come from vetted Microsoft partners which gives peace of mind with purchase. As tech buying responsibilities grow outside of IT, Marketplace keeps teams on the same page while allowing them to get what they need and supports try-before-you-buy scenarios with trials and POCs. Everything your organization buys through Marketplace is consolidated in a single view. Maximize investments with a consumption commitment A Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) commits your organization to a certain dollar amount of cloud spend. When you fulfill that commitment, it unlocks discounts on Azure infrastructure. Microsoft is unique in that we offer a 100% match on eligible solutions through Marketplace with no limit. Today, 85% of Microsoft customers with MACCs are buying through Marketplace. We have 3,800+ eligible solutions and that number grows every day. Integrated experience from discovery to deployment You can find and deploy solutions in our storefront but also in the Microsoft products you know and use every day -- agents in Microsoft 365 Copilot, apps in Teams, models in Microsoft Foundry, a host of solutions in Azure portal, and more. We’re continuing to build out capabilities that allow you to use AI for an even better Marketplace experience. For example, you can now get Marketplace recommendations using Copilot in Azure portal. As we look to make an AI-infused commerce platform, you’ll continue to see improvements here. Empower your channel, get the benefits of Marketplace We aim to empower customers to buy how they want to buy, whether that’s through us and our Marketplace or relying on the channel. If you procure technology through a channel partner, you can bring that partner to source Marketplace solutions on your behalf. One way to do that is through resale enabled offers, which allow partners to work together so software companies can defer the sales and integration of their products to their channel partners. This means your IT provider can better service you. We have several other channel-led Marketplace opportunities in our portfolio, and all a partner has to do is enroll.Unlock bigger deals with flexible billing and five-year terms in Microsoft Marketplace
Many partners are already leveraging flexible billing and multi-year terms to close larger, more strategic deals in the Microsoft Marketplace. These features have been available for some time, but they’re worth revisiting — especially as they enable more personalized, enterprise-grade transactions for both SaaS and Virtual Machine (VM) offers. Why it matters Flexible billing and extended terms aren’t just enhancements — they’re strategic tools that help partners: Align with customer budgeting cycles Support custom payment preferences Simplify complex procurement processes Enable predictable revenue streams If you haven’t revisited your Marketplace offer recently, now is the time. Flexible billing: More control, more opportunity Traditionally, SaaS and VM offerings have been limited to monthly or annual upfront billing. Now, with flexible billing, you can set custom billing schedules with up to 70 installments over the duration of the contract. Key Capabilities Set specific charge dates and amounts Add notes for context (visible to both customer and partner) Support flat-rate SaaS and Professional Services plans Available globally in all Marketplace-supported currencies 💡 Note: Seat-based SaaS pricing is not supported. Metered billing dimensions are still charged monthly. Example Billing Schedule Charge Date Amount (USD) Notes Immediate $0.00 No upfront fee Jan 10, 2026 $5,000.00 First charge Jul 05, 2026 $2,500.00 Mid-year Mar 15, 2027 $8,000.00 Q1 Year 2 Sep 20, 2027 $4,000.00 Final charge Total $19,500.00 Longer terms: Up to five years Previously, term lengths were restrictive: SaaS: Max 3 years VM: 1- or 3-year terms, upfront only Now, both SaaS and VM offers support 1- to 5-year terms, combined with flexible billing. This opens the door to: Multi-year contracts with predictable revenue Enterprise-grade commitments Simplified renewals and fewer procurement cycles Real-world impact: Siemens “Siemens was recently able to transact a 5-year contract with a quarterly payment schedule on the Microsoft Marketplace thanks to the new multiyear contract durations. The process to enable this 5-year contract within one offer with a very large customer was extremely easy, and it simplifies the complex billing schedule. Siemens is excited and will continue to transact complex deals through the Microsoft Marketplace.” — Clare Dennis, Senior Manager, 3rd Party Marketplace Operations, Siemens Best practices to keep in mind Contract Duration: Must be 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 years Charge Dates: Must fall within the contract duration and are executed in UTC Immediate Charges: Can be set to $0 to delay the first payment Currency Support: Pricing can be defined in local currencies using export/import tools Multiparty Offers: Channel partners can apply a uniform customer adjustment percentage Modifications: Once accepted, flexible schedules are locked Renewals: SaaS plans renew at public pricing unless auto-renew is disabled Resources to Help You Get Started Flexible billing schedule documentation Video tutorials: Flexible billing for private offers - This video explains what flexible billing is, how the feature works, and covers details of capabilities and restrictions. Flexible billing for private offers - This demo video shows software development companies how to create a direct customer private offers with a flexible billing schedule. Flexible billing for private offers - This demo video shows how to create multi-party private offers with flexible billing. The flexible billing customer experience - This demo video shows the customer purchase experience for a Marketplace private offer which has a flexible billing setup. This video is valuable to software development companies and customers. Take action Review your current offers in Partner Center and consider updating them to include flexible billing and longer terms. These features can help you: Support custom billing schedules Create multi-year partnerships Compete with tailored deal structures Simplify procurement for enterprise customers Need help? Reach out to your Microsoft partner manager or consult the Marketplace documentation for more details.Accelerating the multi-cloud advantage: Storage migration paths into Azure storage
Broaden your customer base and enhance your app’s exposure by bringing your AWS-based solution to Azure and listing it on Microsoft Marketplace. This guide will walk you through how Azure storage services compare to those on AWS—spotlighting important differences in architecture, scalability, and feature sets—so you can make confident choices when replicating your app’s storage layer to Azure. This post is part of a series on replicating apps from AWS to Azure. View all posts in this series For software development companies looking to expand or replicate their marketplace offerings from AWS to Microsoft Azure, one of the most critical steps is selecting the right Azure storage services. While both AWS and Azure provide robust cloud storage options, their architecture, service availability, and design approaches vary. To deliver reliable performance, scale globally, and meet operational requirements, it’s essential to understand how Azure storage works—and how it compares to AWS—before you replicate your app. AWS to Azure storage mapping When replicating your app from AWS to Azure, start by mapping your existing storage services to the closest Azure equivalents. Both clouds offer robust object, file, and block storage, but they differ in architecture, features, and integration points. Choosing the right Azure service helps keep your app performant, secure, and manageable—and aligns with Microsoft Marketplace requirements for an Azure‑native deployment. AWS Service Azure Equivalent Recommended use cases & key differences Amazon S3 Azure Blob Storage (enable ADLS Gen2 for hierarchical namespace + POSIX ACLs) Object storage with strong consistency and tiering (Hot/Cool/Archive). Blob is part of an Azure Storage account; ADLS Gen2 unlocks data‑lake/analytics features. Amazon EFS Azure Files (SMB/NFS) General‑purpose shared file systems and lift‑and‑shift app shares. Azure Files supports full-featured SMB and fully POSIX compatible NFS shared filesystems on Linux. Amazon FSx for Windows File Server Azure Files (SMB) Windows workloads that need full NTFS semantics, ACLs, and directory integration. Use Premium for low‑latency shares. Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP Azure NetApp Files Enterprise file storage with predictable throughput/latency, multiprotocol (SMB/NFS), and advanced data management. Amazon EBS Azure Managed Disks (Premium SSD v2 or Ultra Disk for top performance) Low‑latency block storage for VMs/DBs with provisioned IOPS/MBps; choose Premium SSD v2/Ultra for tighter SLOs. Local NVMe on EKS Azure Container Storage Extreme performance for Kubernetes workloads with a familiar cloud-native developer experience Many EBS volumes (fleet scale) Azure Elastic SAN (VMs & AKS only) Pooled, large‑scale block for Azure VMs via iSCSI or AKS via Azure Container Storage; simplifies fleet provisioning and management. Tip: Some AWS services map to multiple Azure options. For example, EFS → Azure Files for straightforward SMB/NFS shares, or → Azure NetApp Files when you need stricter latency SLOs and multiprotocol at scale. Match your use case After mapping AWS services to Azure equivalents, the next step is selecting the right service for your workload. Start by considering the access pattern, object, file, or block, and then factor in performance, protocol, and scale. Object storage & analytics: Use Azure Blob Storage for unstructured data like images, logs, and backups. If you need hierarchical namespace and POSIX ACLs, enable Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 on top of Blob. General file sharing / SMB apps: Choose Azure Files (SMB) for lift‑and‑shift scenarios and Windows workloads. Integrate with Entra ID for NTFS ACL parity, and select the Premium tier for low‑latency performance. NFS or multiprotocol file workloads: Start with Azure Files (NFS) for basic needs, or move to Azure NetApp Files for predictable throughput, multiprotocol support, and enterprise‑grade SLAs. High‑performance POSIX workloads: For HPC or analytics pipelines requiring massive throughput, use Azure Managed Lustre. Persistent storage for containers: Azure’s CSI drivers brings Kubernetes support for most Azure disk, files, and blob offerings. Azure Container Storage brings Kubernetes support for unique disk backends that are unsupported by the Azure Disks CSI driver, such as local NVMe. Block storage for VMs and databases: Use Azure Managed Disks for most scenarios, with Premium SSD v2 or Ultra Disk for provisioned IOPS and sub‑millisecond latency. For large fleets or shared performance pools, choose Azure Elastic SAN (VMs & AKS only). Quick tip: Start simple—Blob for object, Azure Files for SMB and NFS, Managed Disks for block—and scale up to NetApp Files, Elastic SAN, or Managed Lustre when performance or compliance demands it. Factor in security and compliance Encryption: Confirm default encryption meets your compliance requirements; enable customer‑managed keys (CMK) if needed. Access control: Apply Azure RBAC for role‑based permissions and ACLs for granular control at the container or file share level. Network isolation: Use Private Endpoints to keep traffic off the public internet and connect storage to your VNet. Identity integration: Prefer Managed Identities or SAS tokens over account keys for secure access. Compliance checks: Verify your chosen service meets certifications like GDPR, HIPAA, or industry‑specific standards. Optimize for cost Tiering: Use Hot, Cool, and Archive tiers in Blob Storage based on access frequency; apply Premium tiers only where low latency is critical. Lifecycle management: Automate data movement and deletion with lifecycle policies to avoid paying for stale data. Reserved capacity: Commit to 1–3 years of capacity for predictable workloads to unlock discounts. Right‑sizing: Choose the smallest disk, volume, or file share that meets your needs; scale up only when required. Monitoring: Set up cost alerts and review usage regularly to catch anomalies early; use Azure Cost Management for insights. Avoid hidden costs: Co‑locate compute and storage to prevent cross‑region egress charges. Data migration from AWS to Azure Migrating your data from AWS to Azure is a key step in replicating your app’s storage layer for Marketplace. The goal is a one‑time transfer—after migration, your app runs fully on Azure. Azure Storage Mover: A managed service that automates and orchestrates large‑scale data transfers from AWS S3, EFS, or on‑premises sources to Azure Blob Storage, Azure Files, or Azure NetApp Files. Ideal for bulk migrations with minimal downtime. AzCopy: A command‑line tool for fast, reliable copying of data from AWS S3 to Azure Blob Storage. Great for smaller datasets or scripted migrations. Azure Data Factory: Built‑in connectors to move data from AWS storage services to Azure, with options for scheduling and transformation. Azure Data Box: For very large datasets, provides a physical device to securely transfer data from AWS to Azure offline. Final readiness before marketplace listing Validate performance under load: Benchmark with real data and confirm your chosen SKUs deliver the IOPS and latency your app needs. Lock down security: Ensure RBAC roles are applied correctly, Private Endpoints are in place, and encryption meets compliance requirements. Control costs: Verify lifecycle policies, reserved capacity, and cost alerts are active to prevent surprises. Enable monitoring: Set up dashboards and alerts for throughput, latency, and capacity so you can catch issues before customers do. Key Resources SaaS Workloads - Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework | Microsoft Learn Metered billing for SaaS offers in Partner Center Create plans for a SaaS offer in Microsoft Marketplace Get over $126K USD in benefits and technical consultations to help you replicate and publish your app with ISV Success Maximize your momentum with step-by-step guidance to publish and grow your app with App AdvisorAI architecture: Powering the next generation of business agents
In this installment of our Partner Spotlight series, we’re continuing to showcase the innovators’ driving app and agent development forward on the Microsoft Marketplace. Each feature highlights the distinct journeys of partners who are pioneering AI-powered solutions, building across the Microsoft ecosystem, and delivering transactable applications that are shaping the future of the marketplace. In this article, I sat down with Imran Mahmood from KAISPE to learn more about their story and partner journey. About Imran: Imran Mahmood is the Chief Executive Officer of KAISPE, leading the company’s vision to deliver AI-powered, secure, and scalable business applications through Microsoft technologies. With over 20 years of experience in enterprise technology and digital transformation, Imran has guided KAISPE’s growth as a global Microsoft Partner with 20+ IPs listed on Microsoft Marketplace. He also oversees KAISPE AI for AI Center of Excellence, driving innovation in AI agents, intelligent automation, and Microsoft ecosystem integration. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ [JR]: Tell us about your organization. [IM]: KAISPE is a Microsoft Partner and software development company focused on developing intelligent, secure, and scalable business applications that help organizations accelerate their digital transformation. Our core expertise includes AI and cloud-based business applications built on Microsoft technologies such as Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and Azure. With a growing portfolio of over 20+ IPs listed on Microsoft Marketplace, KAISPE’s solutions help businesses automate processes, enhance decision-making, and improve user experience. [JR]: What inspired the founding? [IM]: KAISPE was founded with the vision to bridge the gap between complex enterprise systems and user-centric experiences. We recognized that many organizations were still managing manual, time-consuming processes, and saw an opportunity to build smarter, AI-driven solutions that make technology feel like an extension of the team not a barrier. This commitment to solving real business pain points through innovation and simplicity continues to drive our product strategy. [JR]: What products/services do you offer? [IM]: Our portfolio includes industry-specific and horizontal business applications and offer several SaaS and PaaS based solutions and services including such as AutoRecruit (AI-powered recruitment automation), Supplier Relationship Management, Field Service (intelligent field operations), MyFieldAgent, and Employee Self Service. Beyond apps, we are investing heavily in our AI Center of Excellence (AI CoE), which drives innovation in developing intelligent AI agents for recruitment, field service, procurement, and customer support all powered by Microsoft Azure AI and OpenAI technologies. KAISPE’s journey with AI agents Building autonomous agents that think, act, and deliver across industries [JR]: What does your app or agent do, and who is it designed for? [IM]: KAISPE develops AI-powered business applications and intelligent agents that help organizations automate workflows, enhance productivity, and make smarter decisions. Our solutions serve a wide range of users—from field engineers and recruiters to suppliers and enterprise employees. Examples include: MyFieldAgent: Real-time AI support for field engineers with role-based access ensures focus and data security. AutoRecruit & Recruitment Hub: AI-driven hiring tools for job descriptions, resume parsing, skills matching and candidate assessments. MyJobMate: AI-powered job matching and applicant engagement. MyProcureBot: A conversational and autonomous assistant that helps suppliers easily create quotes, manage contracts, and update vendor information automatically. AutoAPX, Travel & Expense & Sales Field: Automate invoice processing, utilize OCR for receipt scanning and leverage AI to auto-categorize expenses based on recognized text and patterns and capture customer data from business cards. Field Service: Uses AI to detect anomalies or irregularities from site images, identify objects automatically, and with Copilot, quickly check inventory, fulfillment dates, and summarize data. All solutions are built under KAISPE’s AI Center of Excellence (AI CoE) and leverage Microsoft Azure AI, Copilot Studio, Power Platform, and Dynamics 365 for secure, scalable, and deeply integrated experiences. [JR]: How has your solution evolved since its initial launch? [IM]: Our journey began with single-use applications tailored to specific customer needs. Over time, we transitioned to standardized, scalable SaaS models with embedded AI features and marketplace deployment. With the launch of our AI CoE, we now build modular agents that personalize and automate workflows at scale—each iteration bringing stronger security, better UX, and deeper integration with Microsoft’s cloud ecosystem. [JR]: What motivated you to start building agents, and what business outcomes have you seen? [IM]: We wanted to make business applications more intelligent and human-like. Users needed faster assistance and guided workflows without relying on back-office teams. That’s why we introduced Agentic AI task-oriented, conversational agents that act and decide autonomously to improve efficiency and create intuitive user experiences. As a result, our customers experience fewer operational delays, faster decision-making, and higher satisfaction. [JR]: How do you prioritize standalone agents versus embedded (in-app) agents in your roadmap? [IM]: We take a strategic approach. Embedded agents enhance existing app experiences—for example, integrating Copilot into Field Service or Travel & Expense Management. Standalone agents like MyProcureBot serve broader use cases across multiple apps. The decision depends on customer needs: if it’s about improving a specific workflow, we embed; if it’s about offering an assistant across systems, we go standalone. [JR]: How have your customers responded to conversational or task-based agents compared to traditional app interfaces? [IM]: Enthusiastically. Solutions like MyFieldAgent, MyJobMate, and MyProcureBot show that users prefer natural interaction over complex menus. Conversational agents simplify tasks and drive higher adoption rates. For many organizations, they’ve transformed routine operations into quick, AI-assisted experiences. [JR]: Which Microsoft tools or frameworks have been most valuable for building agents? [IM]: Microsoft’s stack has been essential: Copilot Studio: For building conversational flows and task logic. Azure AI Studio & Azure OpenAI: For natural language understanding and generative capabilities. Azure Cognitive Services: For speech recognition, translation, and vision features. These tools help us design intelligent, scalable agents that integrate seamlessly with Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365, and Power Platform. [JR]: What challenges have you faced in designing context-aware agents, and how have you overcome them? [IM]: Users expect agents to remember intent and switch topics smoothly. To meet this expectation, we built a context management layer that tracks conversation history, remembers user actions, and connects to backend systems like Dynamics 365. This ensures our agents feel natural and aware—not robotic. [JR]: How do you see agents driving differentiation and discoverability on Microsoft Marketplace? [IM]: Our agent-powered solutions showcase practical AI innovation. When customers explore the Marketplace, they see our focus on conversational, intelligent experiences. This builds trust and aligns with Microsoft’s vision for AI-powered workplaces—helping KAISPE stand out as a partner delivering measurable impact. [JR]: What’s next for KAISPE in terms of agent innovation? [IM]: We’re expanding our AI CoE to focus on multi-agent orchestration and industry-specific templates—starting with healthcare. Our new offerings, KAISPECare and TherapyCare, will deliver agentic AI experiences for small and medium-sized healthcare centers. AI Copilot for Doctors: Auto-generate patient visit summaries Risk flagging for chronic diseases Voice-to-EMR note assistant Drug interaction checking AI Copilot for Patients: Smart appointment suggestions Symptom checking (pre-visit triage) Voice-based booking and registration AI Copilot for Admins: Flag inconsistent or duplicate charges Auto-apply billing codes Generate invoice drafts from consultation notes These Autonomous Agents will empower healthcare professionals with intelligent, voice-driven workflows that save time and improve care. [JR]: How are agents impacting business decision-making for customers? [IM]: Built on AI Foundry, these Agentic AI–powered autonomous agents analyze context, history, and trends to deliver real-time insights and take action based on user intent. In areas like procurement or recruitment or during inspection, they recommend next steps, flag risks, and even handle routine tasks helping businesses make faster, smarter decisions with minimal effort. [JR]: How do you ensure agents stay relevant and continuously learn? [IM]: Through our AI CoE, we continuously update agents based on feedback, performance data, and new Microsoft features. Using Copilot Studio and Azure OpenAI, we feed structured and unstructured data to agents and connect to external knowledge sources. We retrain models regularly to refine responses, improve tone, and adapt to evolving business needs. Marketplace journey & transactable offers [JR]: What motivated KAISPE to publish a transactable offer on the Microsoft Marketplace, and what impact has it had on your business? [IM]: KAISPE saw Microsoft Marketplace as a trusted global platform to reach enterprise customers and simplify procurement through Microsoft’s billing ecosystem. Publishing transactable offers boosted our visibility, credibility, and positioned KAISPE as a verified Microsoft Partner with scalable, ready-to-deploy solutions. This move expanded our global customer base, generated new leads, opened co-sell opportunities with Microsoft field sellers, streamlined sales operations, shortened the sales cycle, and enhanced customer confidence. [JR]: What advice would you give to new partners who are just starting to publish? [IM]: Start with a clear value proposition focused on solving customer problems. Use Marketplace Rewards early, engage with co-sell tools, and make your offers transactable! Treat Marketplace as a strategic growth platform—not just a listing. We leveraged App Advisor, Marketplace Rewards, and co-sell resources to optimize listings, improve visibility, and align with Microsoft’s best practices. Navigating compliance requirements and configuring transactable offers was complex, but support from Microsoft’s Marketplace and Partner Success teams helped us overcome these challenges through technical guidance and collaboration. Lessons learned [JR]: What key takeaways would you share with other partners considering a similar path? [IM]: Invest early in building transactable and secure offers. Leverage Microsoft’s ecosystem and maintain strong communication with your Partner Development Manager. If we were to start over, we’d invest in transactable readiness sooner and engage Marketplace Rewards earlier in the journey. [JR]: Any unexpected wins or challenges? [IM]: A major win has been global visibility — customers from regions we hadn’t directly targeted discovered us through Marketplace. The main challenge was keeping pace with Microsoft’s evolving listing requirements, which improved our processes. [JR]: How has your Marketplace experience shaped your future roadmap? [IM]: It has solidified our focus on building scalable, AI-driven products under the AI Center of Excellence (CoE), strengthening our integration with Microsoft Dynamics 365 and expanding our IP portfolio across industries. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Resources Join ISV Success - Build and publish applications and agents faster with powerful AI developer tools, consultations, and technical guidance—then grow your sales through Microsoft Marketplace Join the marketplace community - Access resources for every stage of the journey on the Microsoft Marketplace, provide feedback, and engage with other partners and Microsoft subject-matter experts focused on your success. Microsoft Marketplace - Your trusted source for cloud solutions, AI apps, and agents Paths for partnership - Learn more about the ways you can partner with us—from building and selling solutions to differentiating your business with a Solutions Partner designation.
