Microsoft Build 2017: All the announcements that matter

The biggest tech companies hold annual developer conferences, and Microsoft’s has just kicked off.

Every year Microsoft spends a few days trying to bring developers and software engineers into its fold with a developer conference called Build. While at the conference, the company typically also announces updates for its services and platforms – whether that be Windows 10, Office 365, or the Azure cloud computing platform. Here all the major updates Microsoft announced at Build 2017.

• Microsoft unveils the Surface Laptop, a Windows 10 S device
• Microsoft will now release major Windows 10 updates twice a year
• Windows 10 S is a streamlined version of Windows for education

What is Build 2017?

Build is Microsoft’s annual developer conference. This year’s conference – known as Build 2017 – started off a little different. The company used its main keynote to focus entirely on developers. In past years, it was all about consumer technology and updates to consumer products like Windows 10 and Surface devices. Microsoft likely got all that out of the way with its education event earlier this month.

So, discussions during the Build 2017 main keynote primarily ranged from Microsoft’s artificial intelligence efforts to talk about its growing Windows 10 user base. Thrilling stuff, right? 

Can you watch Build 2017 online?

You can livestream Microsoft’s entire conference from the Build 2017 site.

What was announced at Build 2017?

Windows 10 users

Microsoft announced that Windows 10 is now running on 500 million “monthly active devices.” That metric includes not only Windows 10 installed on PCs, tablets, and phones, but also on Xbox One consoles, HoloLens, and Surface Hub devices. Remember, though: at the Build 2015, Windows boss Terry Myerson claimed Windows 10 would be installed on one billion devices within three years (so by summer 2018).

One year later, however, after Microsoft sold its Nokia subsidiary, Myerson admitted that getting to one billion Windows 10 devices would take longer. And by judging by this announcement, we’re guessing it still won’t meet that original 2018 deadline. Still, Windows 10 did get a boost in adoption – likely due to the year-long free upgrade offer that began with the operating system’s launch in July 2015.

ZDNet noted the 500-million milestone is the first numbers-related announcement in more than seven months, and that Windows 10’s growth pace has slowed significantly in the last couple years, though historical comparisons of such milestones are difficult.

Office 365 and Microsoft Graph

Speaking of usage numbers, Microsoft also announced that commercial Office 365 is running on 100 million monthly active devices, whereas as of October last year, there were 85 million commercial users, meaning 15 million have since then. While talking about Office 365, Microsoft mentioned it is adding new functionality to Microsoft Graph, an API that gives developers access to tools and data from Office 365 services.

Microsoft Graph is the basis of many applications built on top of Office’s services. It helps those apps understand more about the data we have in our systems. Previously, Graph could only provide user and activity data, but now, developers can leverage device data as well. Microsoft has also added a series of new core capabilities into Graph, including Delta queries and ‘custom data’.

New Insights APIs are coming too. They’ll be available in preview form and will allow developers to collect more data, for instance, on the most widely shared documents on OneDrive.

Developers can leverage Microsoft Graph to create systems of intelligence that fundamentally change the future & culture of work. #MSBuild pic.twitter.com/IopvjF7qza

— Windows Developer (@windowsdev) May 10, 2017

More Cortana devices and skills

• Move over, Alexa: More Cortana devices and skills are on the way

In an effort to trump rivals, Microsoft announced it has signed partnerships with HP and Intel to bring more Cortana-powered devices to market. Microsoft explained that HP is planning to integrate Cortana into devices, while Intel will focus on reference platforms. Either way, expect Microsoft’s assistant to become much more ubiquitous. Microsoft also launched a Cortana Skills Kit in public preview.

The company basically gave developers the ability to create skills – or even port existing Amazon Alexa skills – over to Microsoft’s platform. This should drastically improve Cortana and make any upcoming Cortana hardware more useful. Microsoft revealed Cortana is being used across 141 million monthly active devices. While discussing Cortana, the company said it wants to bring artificial intelligence to all its products. That includes Xbox, Windows, Bing, and Office.

Ready for Cortana? 140 million monthly Cortana users are ready for you. #MSBuild pic.twitter.com/xO7WLD3MhK

— Windows Developer (@windowsdev) May 10, 2017

Visual Studio

Microsoft has launched its Visual Studio coding platform for the Mac.

It allows developers to code apps using Microsoft’s development environment on Apple’s MacOS platform. They can sync across both Windows and Mac devices and build native mobile apps for iOS, macOS, Android, and the web. Microsoft said it enables MacOS and iOS developers “to use Microsoft’s development tools, since they will no longer need a Windows computer or virtual machine to do so.”

There are actually three different versions of Visual Studio for Mac available at launch: Visual Studio Community, Visual Studio Professional, and Visual Studio Enterprise. All three have been designed natively for macOS, and developers can manage their code hosted by any provider, including GitHub and Visual Studio Team Services. As for programming languages, the C# and F# languages are supported.

Just announced @ #MSBuild. #VisualStudio for #Mac. Build apps for mobile, web, & cloud w/ #dotNET & games w/ #Unity. https://t.co/lDDccK9IBO pic.twitter.com/l3sLXLGeDC

— Visual Studio (@VisualStudio) May 10, 2017

Want to know more?

Stay tuned to Pocket-lint’s Microsoft hub for what’s next at Build 2017. Microsoft also has some information avaialble about its Build 2017 announcements on its news hub.