Partner Blog | Expanded partner benefits are now available: What’s new in February 2026
Expanded partner benefits are now available across the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program. These updates reflect continued investment in the tools, resources, and support partners rely on to build, differentiate, and grow, and they incorporate feedback we hear consistently across the ecosystem. If you read our January post about planning ahead for the February refresh, this is the follow-up: the new benefits are now rolling out, and partners with eligible offers will find them in Partner Center as they become available. What’s new You’ll find a range of meaningful additions designed to empower you to move faster with AI, support security needs, and improve go-to-market execution. Highlights include: Copilot additions in select offers: The FY26 refresh introduces new Copilot-related benefits across parts of the program, including Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, and Microsoft Dragon Copilot (per user) in select partner offers where available. Security benefits expansion: Security-focused benefits have been broadened, including additions such as Microsoft Defender Suite, Microsoft Entra Suite, and Microsoft Intune Suite in select offerings. Azure credit updates: Azure benefits are being updated across multiple offers, including new additions and increases in value for certain cloud benefits. These credits are designed to support solution development, testing, and expansion of your practice. Go-to-market resources: As partners continue to access marketing benefits and resources through the program, Microsoft is simplifying discovery and execution—so you can bring campaigns to market with less friction. Continue reading herePartner Case Study | Mead Johnson Nutrition
In the race to innovate, global enterprises aren’t usually held back by a lack of ideas but rather by the friction hidden in their data. Legacy SAP systems, siloed data storage environments, and inconsistent data structures can quietly slow operations, including reporting, forecasting, compliance, and even cutting-edge AI adoption. This friction can be especially acute in the retail life sciences and consumer health sectors, where any new products must adhere to strict standards of safety and scientific rigor, all at an enterprise scale. In these data-intensive environments, the stakes are high, and the pressure to innovate safely and without business disruption is even higher. Healthcare and consumer health organizations need a partner who can help them move fast while respecting the boundaries, systems, and regulations that keep them compliant. In other words, they need a partner with the speed and precision of a tiger—and Tiger Analytics is true to their namesake. Founded in 2011, Tiger Analytics is an innovator in AI and data science consulting with a team of more than 6,200. A Microsoft partner with specializations in Analytics and AI and Machine Learning, the team helps enterprises around the world modernize complex data ecosystems at scale so they can harness insights for real-world innovation. With deep experience in SAP, data engineering, and Azure cloud services, they’ve built a reputation for solving high-stakes data challenges with clarity and speed. And it was these capabilities that made Tiger Analytics an ideal option when global pediatric nutrition leader Mead Johnson Nutrition (MJN) decided to transform their digital operations and lay the foundation for faster, more efficient, and scalable enterprise AI. Modernizing data architecture to fuel smarter innovation With more than a century of experience developing science-based formulas for infants and children, MJN serves millions of families in highly regulated markets across North America, Asia, and Latin America. The scale of their operation makes any digital transformation a significant undertaking. So when they initiated a major effort to modernize their enterprise resource planning—which included migrating from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA—there was some inherent risk involved. The switch disrupted the existing data replication layer that fed analytics and reporting systems across the enterprise. To maintain business continuity, MJN needed to rapidly rebuild and enhance this layer. MJN already had an established partnership with Tiger Analytics, having worked with them on various data engineering initiatives. MJN brought Tiger Analytics in again to help design, build, and operationalize the new replication layer, enabling seamless data flow from the upgraded S/4HANA system to MJN’s analytics platform. MJN outlined three key strategic goals they needed the solution to support: Real-time replication from S/4HANA into the DnA Delta Lakehouse for advanced analytics, AI and machine learning use cases, and enterprise-wide reporting. Clean and secure nutrition data delivery from SAP S/4 to the Global EDAP team, which manages centralized analytics and data processing across business units. A smooth, timely transition to ensure business teams retained access to business-critical SAP tables. With MJN's goals clearly articulated and the partnership already well established, Tiger Analytics was ready to get to work. Continue reading here Explore all case studies or submit your own Subscribe to case studies tag to follow all new case study posts. Don't forget to follow this blog to receive email notifications of new stories!
Announcing seamless integration of Apache Kafka with Azure Cosmos DB in Azure Native Confluent
Integrate Azure Cosmos DB with Kafka applications Confluent announced general availability (GA) of the fully managed V2 Kafka connector for Azure Cosmos DB, enabling users to seamlessly integrate their Azure Cosmos DB containers with Kafka-powered event streaming applications. without worrying about provisioning, scaling, or managing the connector infrastructure. The Confluent Cosmos DB v2 connector offers significant advantages as compared to the v1 connector in terms of higher throughput, enhanced security and observability, and increased reliability. Seamless Integration with Azure Native Confluent We are excited to announce a new capability in Azure Native Confluent service that enables users to create and configure Confluent-managed Cosmos DB Kafka connectors (v2) for Azure Cosmos DB containers through a direct, seamless experience in the Azure portal. Users can also provision and manage environments, Kafka clusters and Kafka topics from within the Azure Native Confluent service, creating a holistic end-to-end experience to integrate with Azure Cosmos DB. This eliminates the need for users to switch between the Azure and Confluent Cloud portal. Key Highlights Bi-directional Support: Allows users to create source connectors to stream data from Cosmos DB to Kafka topics, or sink connectors to move data from Kafka into Cosmos DB. Secure Authentication: Users can authenticate to Kafka cluster using service accounts, enabling least-privilege access controls to provision the connectors - aligned with Confluent’s recommended security guidelines. Create a Confluent Cosmos DB (v2) Kafka Connector from Azure portal The following section summarizes the key steps required to provision the connector from the Azure Native Confluent service. Navigate to the native Confluent resource in Azure. Navigate to Connectors -> Create new connector You can also create an environment, cluster and topic from within the Azure Portal. Choose the desired connector type Source: to stream data from Azure Cosmos DB Sink to move data into Azure Cosmos DB Select ‘Azure Cosmos DB V2’ as the connector plugin Enter the connector name. Then, select the required Kafka topics, Azure Cosmos DB account and database. Select Service Account authentication and provide a name for the service account. When the connector is created, this will create a new service account on Confluent Cloud. Optionally, you can also select the user-account based authentication by provisioning an API key on Confluent Cloud. Do the required connector configurations. Enter the topic container mapping in the form of ‘topic1#container1,topic2#container2…’ Review the configuration summary and click Create. Your connector will appear in the list with real-time status indicators. Other Resources Try out the Azure Native Confluent Service right away! Every new sign-up gets a free $1000 credit! To learn more, check out the Microsoft Docs Follow the Azure Partner discussion board to keep up to date all on Azure announcements and join the conversation with subject matter experts! If you would like to give us feedback on this feature, the overall product or have any suggestions for us to work on, please drop in your suggestions in the comments.
Unleashing New Business Opportunities for Microsoft Partners with PostgreSQL & MySQL on Azure
The latest innovations announced at Microsoft Ignite 2025 for PostgreSQL and MySQL running on Azure are more than just technical upgrades—they’re a launchpad for new business growth, deeper customer engagement, and accelerated digital transformation. Here’s how these advancements can help you deliver greater value and unlock new opportunities for your clients. 1. Introducing Azure HorizonDB: Built for Performance and AI Workloads We’re excited to unveil Azure HorizonDB in private preview—a new, fully managed PostgreSQL service engineered for business and developers alike. HorizonDB is designed for ultra-low latency, high read scale, and built-in AI capabilities, offering seamless scaling up to 192 virtual cores and 128 TB of storage. Deep integration with developer tools, including GitHub Copilot, delivers performance, resilience, and simplicity at any scale. With HorizonDB, teams can: Build AI apps at scale using advanced DiskANN vector indexing, pre-provisioned AI models, semantic search, and unified support for both relational and graph data. Accelerate app development with built-in extensions, including the PostgreSQL extension for Visual Studio Code integrated with GitHub Copilot. Copilot in VS Code is context-aware for PostgreSQL and enables one-click performance debugging. Unlock data insights through deep integrations with Microsoft Fabric and Microsoft Foundry. Expect reliability with enterprise-ready features from day one, including Entra ID integration, Private Link networking, and Azure Defender for Cloud. Business Opportunity: Position your practice as an early adopter and expert in next-generation database solutions. Position your practice as an early adopter and expert in next-generation database solutions by introducing customers to Azure HorizonDB. Use this conversation to offer migration, modernization, and AI-powered application development services leveraging Azure Database for PostgreSQL with future migrations to HorizonDB. Help clients build resilient, high-performance, and intelligent data platforms—driving new revenue streams and deeper customer engagement. 2. Modernize Data Infrastructure with Limitless Scale and Performance Azure’s new Elastic Clusters in Azure Database for PostgreSQL enable organizations to scale their databases horizontally across multiple nodes, supporting virtually unlimited throughput and storage. This means you can help clients build and grow multi-tenant SaaS applications and large-scale analytics solutions without the complexity of manual sharding or the limitations of legacy infrastructure. Azure’s managed service automates shard management, tenant isolation, and cross-node query coordination, freeing up your teams to focus on innovation instead of administration. Business Opportunity: Position your practice as the go-to partner for scalable, future-proof data platforms. Offer migration services, architecture consulting, and managed solutions that leverage Azure’s unique scale-out capabilities. 3. Accelerate Innovation with AI-Ready Databases Azure is leading the way in AI integration for open-source databases. With the PostgreSQL extension for Visual Studio Code and native Microsoft Foundry support, developers can build smarter apps and AI agents leveraging advanced AI capabilities directly in the database. Features like natural language querying, vector search, and seamless Copilot integration mean your clients can unlock new insights and automate processes faster than ever. Business Opportunity: Expand your offerings to include AI-powered analytics, intelligent agent development, and custom Copilot solutions. Help organizations harness their data for real-time decision-making and enhanced customer experiences. 4. Simplify and Accelerate Migrations from Legacy Systems The new AI-assisted Oracle to PostgreSQL migration tool dramatically reduces the effort and risk of moving off expensive, proprietary databases. Integrated into the PostgreSQL extension for VS Code, it automates schema and code conversion, provides inline AI explanations, and ensures secure, context-aware migrations. Business Opportunity: Lead migration projects that deliver rapid ROI. Offer assessment, planning, and execution services to help clients escape legacy costs and embrace open-source flexibility on Azure. 5. Enable Seamless Analytics and Real-Time Insights With support for Parquet in the Azure storage extension for PostgreSQL and Fabric zero-ETL mirroring for Azure Database for MySQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Azure is bridging operational databases and analytics platforms. Business Opportunity: Build solutions that unify data estates, streamline analytics workflows, and deliver actionable intelligence. Position your team as experts in data integration and real-time analytics. 6. Drive Industry-Specific Transformation Ignite 2025 showcases real-world success stories from industries like healthcare (Apollo Hospitals), automotive (GM), and finance (Nasdaq), demonstrating how Azure’s open-source databases power resilient, scalable, and AI-driven solutions. Business Opportunity: Use these case studies to inspire clients in regulated or complex sectors. Offer tailored solutions that meet strict compliance, security, and performance requirements. Why Partners Win with Azure’s Latest Innovations Faster time-to-value: Help clients adopt the latest tech with minimal downtime and risk. Expanded service portfolio: From migration to AI, analytics to managed services, the new capabilities open doors to new revenue streams. Trusted platform: Azure’s enterprise-grade security, compliance, and high availability mean you can deliver solutions with confidence. Ready to help your customers achieve more? Dive deeper into the Ignite 2025 announcements and start building the next generation of intelligent, scalable, and AI-powered solutions on Microsoft Azure. Learn more here: https://ignite.microsoft.com/en-US/homeUpdated requirements for the SAP on Microsoft Azure specialization
The SAP on Microsoft Azure specialization is a credential that validates your deep expertise in planning, migrating, and operating SAP (Systems, Applications, and Products in Data Processing) workloads on Microsoft Azure. Microsoft is updating this specialization to make it more accessible for a broader range of partners. These changes are designed to expand opportunity—making it possible for more organizations to demonstrate SAP on Azure expertise, earn official Microsoft recognition, and unlock exclusive go‑to‑market advantages that strengthen differentiation in a competitive market. What’s changed Lower ACR threshold: Beginning in January 2026, the Azure consumed revenue (ACR) requirement decreased from $30,000 to $7,500,* totaled over three months, significantly reducing the barrier to entry while maintaining a high standard of technical capability. Streamlined skilling validation: Partners can validate required Microsoft learning coursework directly within Partner Center, removing the need to do so in the third‑party audit for this specialization. Skilling requirements may be met through either: The Azure for SAP Workloads Specialty certification. Completion of the Run SAP on the Microsoft Cloud learning path. This simplified approach accelerates the path to earning the specialization. Next actions Visit Partner Center to review the updated SAP on Microsoft Azure specialization requirements and apply or renew. Be sure to follow the Specialization Updates blog to stay up to date on all announcements! Throughout this document, $ refers to US dollar (USD).Partner Blog | Azure updates for partners: December 2025
At Microsoft Ignite 2025, we explored what it means for organizations to move into the era of Frontier transformation. This shift is focused on embedding AI across every part of the business to improve decision-making, increase speed, and create new value. Organizations leading in AI make it foundational. They rethink processes and integrate new technologies from the start to improve efficiency. For partners, this move toward Frontier represents a significant opportunity to lead customers into this new era. By building AI-powered solutions, connecting data for intelligent insights, and deploying Microsoft Azure’s cloud-ready platforms, partners can deliver value faster and scale confidently through the Microsoft ecosystem. Microsoft Ignite came with a significant number of announcements, so I’ve gathered the Azure updates that matter most for partners. These are the capabilities that can strengthen your ability to deliver intelligent solutions, drive operational efficiency, and differentiate your product or service in the market. You can also explore how partners are turning momentum into action, access highlights, and grab practical guidance from my Microsoft Ignite session. Continue reading hereDon’t miss Building Agents with Microsoft Foundry and Microsoft Foundry Agent Service!
Our dynamic four-part webinar series, Agentic AI + Copilot Partner Skilling Accelerator, empowers you to harness the Microsoft AI ecosystem to unlock new revenue streams and enhance customer success. Across the four sessions, Microsoft partners can expect to learn how to apply AI tools in no-code, low-code, and pro-code scenarios to build intelligent chat and workflow solutions, extend and customize capabilities, and create advanced, custom AI functionality. Don't miss the final session in the series, Building Agents with Microsoft Foundry and Microsoft Foundry Agent Service, where you'll learn how to design and deploy intelligent agents with Microsoft Foundry and Microsoft Foundry Agent Service, including multi-agent architectures and key protocols such as A2A and MCP. The live virtual event is scheduled for December 15, 2025. Register today to reserve your spot! Be sure to follow this Partner news blog for all partner related announcements by clicking follow above!Partner Case Study | Tiger Analytics
In every industry, preventing equipment downtime and maintaining operational continuity is a top priority. Preventive maintenance—making rounds, doing routine maintenance, and logging data—has long been a manual, tedious process, but with recent advances in AI, predicting and preventing failures and downtime is becoming more manageable than ever before. Tiger Analytics is a solutions integrator and Microsoft partner that implements AI-powered solutions. The organization has all three Solutions Partner designations for Azure, as well as three specializations: AI Platform on Microsoft Azure (formerly AI and Machine Learning on Microsoft Azure), Build AI Apps on Microsoft Azure, and Analytics on Microsoft Azure. They believe in using AI to transform operations for customers across industries. Their commitment to using AI to develop smart solutions empowered them to help a medical device company develop a predictive maintenance solution for their radiation therapy devices. Continue reading here Explore all case studies or submit your own Subscribe to case studies tag to follow all new case study posts. Don't forget to follow this blog to receive email notifications of new stories!Secure migration starts with trusted cloud and AI expertise
Modernizing legacy IT environments and moving securely to the cloud are top priorities for customers today. With the cloud migration market projected to reach $1.03 trillion 1 by 2030, representing an approximate 28% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), 2 organizations everywhere seek to strengthen their digital foundations—and they expect migrations to be secure, efficient, and tied to business outcomes. This is where partners make the difference. Your expertise speeds transformation and empowers customers to realize the full value of Microsoft Azure. Why modernizing legacy IT environments is essential Modernization is critical across industries. As software and hardware reach end of support, the risk of disruption rises. Unsupported systems create security gaps and operational challenges because they no longer receive essential updates. Meanwhile, regulatory pressure is mounting. Regulations like the EU’s Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and mandates in financial services and data management demand secure, up-to-date infrastructure to stay compliant and avoid costly penalties. Modernization isn’t just about reducing risk; it’s about seizing the moment of innovation. Modern platforms support AI, automation, and advanced data capabilities. Customers can move faster, operate more efficiently, and respond rapidly to new opportunities by updating legacy systems. Your expertise positions them competitively at the frontier of AI and intelligent operations. Continue reading herePartner Case Study | Tiger Analytics
Organizations need to adopt more flexible, scalable, and cost-effective solutions to keep up with the evolving landscape of data analytics. Traditional on-premises systems, while robust and reliable, often face limitations in handling the increasing volume and velocity of data. To thrive, organizations must modernize their critical applications, replacing legacy systems with cloud-native solutions that offer better scalability, fault tolerance, and security. Microsoft partner Tiger Analytics is at the forefront of this modernization process. The organization has all three Solutions Partner designations for Azure, as well as three specializations: AI Platform on Microsoft Azure (formerly AI and Machine Learning on Microsoft Azure), Build AI Apps on Microsoft Azure, and Analytics on Microsoft Azure. Tiger Analytics used their expertise to execute a digital transformation for a leading global intimates and sleepwear retailer’s analytics ecosystem, delivering a seamless migration from the on-premises model to Azure and Snowflake. Over a period of 10 months, the intimates retailer was able to transition out of legacy on-premises systems with a 100% success rate on all workloads—and significantly reduced costs along the way. The framework Tiger Analytics used to execute this migration can be tweaked for any organization based on their priorities, processes, and current ecosystem. Collaborating for a smooth migration The global intimates and sleepwear retailer is on a mission to build a modern ecosystem that will improve customer experience and enhance productivity. The company adopted Microsoft Azure in 2022 and migrated their enterprise data from Teradata to Snowflake in 2023. With the right foundation in place, the retailer seized the opportunity to build a modern data platform and shed the legacy technology debt. The retailer collaborated with Tiger Analytics to implement a well-structured, phased migration strategy to ensure a smooth transition of analytical and reporting workloads. The objective of this exercise was not only to refactor the code to a new platform, but also to introduce best practices and efficiencies to improve current processes—all while minimizing effort and costs. For Tiger Analytics, the first step in the migration strategy was a comprehensive workload prioritization and business impact analysis. This process involved collaboration with business stakeholders, IT, and the data science team to thoroughly understand the current landscape. Their top considerations were the number of scripts per module, need for automation, module dependencies, impact on daily tasks, and complexity of implementation. Continue reading here Explore all case studies or submit your own Subscribe to case studies tag to follow all new case study posts. Don't forget to follow this blog to receive email notifications of new stories!
