Microsoft Cuts Ethical AI Team Amid AI Expansion

Microsoft has eliminated its Ethics and Society team, which was responsible for ensuring that the company's AI features met ethical standards. The team was reportedly made up of just seven employees at the time of its elimination, down from a high of 30. Microsoft maintains its Office of Responsible AI, which creates broad principles to govern corporate AI decision-making, but former employees say the Ethics and Society team played a key role in translating those principles into actionable changes at the product development level. The move comes as Microsoft continues to expand its AI offerings and add them to every product sector it can.