Databricks and Microsoft announced an expansion of their decade-long strategic partnership, extending the collaboration into the 2030s. Under the deal, Databricks will deepen its use of Azure Databricks to run its own core business operations and build its unified lakehouse, while Microsoft continues integrating Databricks’ Data and AI platform across its products, bringing capabilities like Genie, Databricks’ AI co-worker, directly into customer workflows.
Databricks will also expand its use of Azure Cobalt, Microsoft’s next-generation Arm-based infrastructure, to improve performance and efficiency for agentic and data-intensive workloads. The company currently uses Cobalt 100 and plans to adopt Cobalt 200, which the companies said delivers up to 50 percent better performance and includes memory encryption enabled by default. The expanded integration spans Microsoft Entra, Azure Data Lake Storage, Azure security, Microsoft OneLake, Power BI, Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Foundry, Power Platform, Microsoft 365, Teams, and Copilot, bringing governed, real-time data and AI capabilities into existing business workflows through tools including Genie, Genie Ontology, and Unity AI Gateway.
Thousands of joint customers, including Banco Bradesco, the Cincinnati Reds, Electrolux, SMBC, and Unilever, already use Azure Databricks to run critical workloads and scale AI. Databricks serves more than 20,000 organizations worldwide, including AT&T, Bayer, BMW Group, HSBC, T-Mobile, and 70 percent of the Fortune 500.
KEY QUOTES:
“For nearly a decade, Databricks and Microsoft have helped enterprises innovate with data and AI. Today, our partnership is stronger than ever. With Databricks Genie and Unity AI Gateway deeply integrated across Microsoft’s products, we’re helping enterprises unify their data and ground AI in business knowledge. This lets customers get the full benefits of agents and models while controlling costs and ensuring governance.”
Ali Ghodsi, Co-Founder and CEO, Databricks
“The next generation of AI will be defined by how effectively organizations turn their unique knowledge into intelligence. Microsoft and Databricks are helping customers connect data, AI and business context to accelerate decision-making and drive measurable impact. Databricks’ decision to run its own core business operations on Azure Databricks also gives customers confidence in a platform proven at enterprise scale.”
Judson Althoff, CEO, Microsoft Commercial Business
