Microsoft has invested $10 million in a tech center located in São Paulo, its second and biggest center in Latin America joining a previously launched center in Mexico City. Microsoft has tech centers in 17 countries.
Microsoft said the centers are collaborative environments that provide access to technologies and expertise, “enabling companies to envision, design, and deploy solutions to meet their needs.”
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The Brazilian facility is 1,300 square meters and includes a data center with 360 processors and 700 terrabytes of storage capacity. The technology center was built in partnership with 15 companies – AMD, Brocade, Dell, EMC, Emerson, Emulex, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Jabra, NetApp, Nokia, Panduit, Polycom, Schneider and Smart.
As part of the launch, Microsoft also announced a memorandum of understanding with the Brazilian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation. The agreement calls for the creation of “accelerators” aimed at fostering innovation and entrepreneurship technology based in Brazil, which serve as incubators for startups. The initial program calls for the participation of 60 start ups from six Brazilian cities for three years in incubation, with access to the latest technologies from Microsoft.
Microsoft also highlighted its experience in supporting micro firms through its “BizSpark” program, which it noted has served more than 2,000 Brazilian startups. Both the government and Microsoft are looking to promote the interest of students for training courses and technology to leverage the development of applications in areas such as education, retail, telecommunications, oil and gas, health, tourism, agribusiness, sports, entertainment, major events (World Cup 2014 World and Olympic Games 2016) and digital games.
Brazil set for cloud leadership
Microsoft is also investing in Brazil to become a cloud computing provider. The company has confirmed the launch of a data center in Brazil to provide and support cloud computing services.
Citing security concerns, Microsoft did not disclose details.
Last April, Orlando Ayala, corporate VP and president for emerging markets at Microsoft, revealed that the company was considering Brazil as the home for a data center focused on cloud services.
The center is expected to provide cloud service for Brazil and possibly South Cone small and mid-size enterprises, since SME customers were served by U.S. infrastructure.
