GE and Microsoft Deepen Strategic Alliance to Accelerate Industrial Internet Adoption

GE’s journey from a traditional conglomerate to a technology-focused enterprise began in the mid‑2010s, when former CEO Jeff Immelt announced a bold vision to transform the company into a “top‑10 software firm” by 2020. To lay the groundwork, GE invested heavily in its industrial‑IoT platform, Predix, and built an in‑house cloud infrastructure that could support thousands of connected assets.

During the same period, GE acquired a portfolio of IoT‑and software‑focused businesses—including ServiceMax, BitStew, Wise.io, ShipXpress, and Daintree Networks—and announced strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Apple, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft.

Today, under the stewardship of CEO John L. Flannery, GE is streamlining its portfolio by divesting non‑core units such as its healthcare and rail businesses, while deepening collaborations with leading technology vendors. The latest announcement re‑energizes the GE‑Microsoft relationship by integrating Predix with Azure IoT, Azure Data, and Azure Analytics, and by deploying the solution internally to power its own operations.

“Our customers are telling us that the combination of GE’s industrial expertise and Microsoft’s cloud capabilities delivers a winning proposition,” said Karthik Suri, GE Digital’s chief operating officer. “They see this partnership as a catalyst for transformation.”

Industry analyst Dan Miklovic of LNS Research noted that “every time Microsoft becomes a more embedded partner with automation firms, it dilutes the influence of competitors like AWS or SAP HANA.” He added that Microsoft could either become the foundation for these solutions or maintain competitive parity.

Both companies emphasize a joint go‑to‑market strategy. “We will sell Industrial Internet solutions together,” Suri said. “Our shared vision of digital transformation has laid the groundwork for a robust partnership.”

GE expects the collaboration to accelerate the adoption of its so‑called Industrial Internet by leveraging each partner’s strengths: GE will continue to help customers unlock insights from their industrial assets, while Microsoft will expand GE’s cloud footprint across Azure’s 54 global regions—a reach that exceeds any other provider.

“The partnership will enable our mutual customers to deploy production‑scale IoT projects faster and realize ROI more quickly,” Suri explained. “By focusing on outcomes, we can drive a rapid, enterprise‑wide transformation.”

Ultimately, GE aims to build an open ecosystem around Predix, welcoming input from major technology firms, system integrators, and independent software vendors. “We want a vibrant, multi‑stakeholder ecosystem so that our customers receive a fully integrated suite of solutions,” Suri added.

In short, the renewed alliance positions GE and Microsoft at the forefront of industrial‑IoT innovation, combining GE’s deep industry knowledge with Microsoft’s expansive cloud infrastructure to deliver tangible value to customers worldwide.