By leveraging DALL∙E 2 in Azure OpenAI Service, developers get cloud infrastructure that combines the innovative text-to-image capabilities of the AI with the compliance, security, and certifications of Microsoft’s cloud products. Notably, Microsoft is also extending the integration to its consumer apps through the new Microsoft Designer app. Yes, the mysterious app that has shown up several times through the year is the new consumer portal to access DALL∙E 2 features in Windows 11. Additionally, DALL∙E 2 benefits will also be available in the Image Creator within Microsoft Bing. Eric Boyd, Microsoft corporate vice president, AI Platform, this shows its commitment to using AI to power its technologies. “The power of the models has crossed this threshold of quality and now they’re useful in more applications,” he says. “The other trend that we’re seeing is all the product developers are thinking through and understanding the ways that they can use AI in their products for both ease of use as well as saying, ‘Oh, I can make my product work better if I use AI.’”
Usage
To develop the DALL∙E 2 AI, Microsoft built a supercomputer exclusive for OpenAI that runs on Azure. This is the same supercomputer that also trained OpenAI’s GPT-3. Microsoft has an exclusive license of the GPT-3 API with OpenAI. Microsoft was also a $1 billion investor in OpenAI, which allows Azure to power all cloud services from the open-source AI provider. Using DALL∙E 2, toy manufacturing giant Mattel was able to develop new Hot Wheels model car designs. At a minimum, the AI was able to serve as an inspiration and provide details of potential designs: “It’s about going, ‘Oh, I didn’t think about that!’” says Carrie Buse, director of product design at Mattel Future Lab in El Segundo, California. “Ultimately, quality is the most important thing,” she noted. “But sometimes quantity can help you find the quality.”
