Microsoft Stories

In this episode we focus on the famous Abbey Road studio in London, which has been used by musicians such as The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Sir Edward Elgar, and was used to record the scores to The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Empire Strikes Back, Gravity and Black Panther.Specifically, we will be looking at Abbey Road's music technology incubator, called Red. Microsoft helps Red run hackathons, which aim to understand what the future of sound recording could look like.You will hear from Dominika Dronska, Head of Digital at Abbey Road, and Chagall, a singer and musician who uses a motion capture suit in her performances. They will talk about what innovation means to them.Click the play button and join us on our journey.

Hello and welcome to Microsoft Stories, a new podcast about technology and innovation.In this episode we focus on Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs some of the busiest hospitals in London. Staff are wearing Microsoft HoloLens, the mixed-reality headset, as they work in high-risk areas. This has been useful during the COVID-19 pandemic, as only one person wearing a HoloLens has to be close to patients, while the rest of the medical team can watch a live feed in another room.You will hear from James Kinross, a consultant surgeon and senior lecturer at Imperial College London who was on the frontlines of medical care during the pandemic.You will also hear from Annette Garner, an Azure specialist focused on data and AI in health, and Laura Robinson, Health and Life Sciences Lead at Microsoft UK, who reveal how technology can help doctors, nurses and GPs, and ease pressure on the NHS.

In this episode we are focusing on Project Natick, a Microsoft research project that placed data centres in the sea and powered them using renewable energy.The aim is to see if data centres can be deployed closer to the people, businesses and organisations who use them. Almost half of the world’s population lives within 120 miles of the ocean, so the benefits for them are potentially huge.How did Microsoft come up with the idea to place data centres in the sea, and how did it happen?Ben Cutler, who leads the Project Natick team, and Michael Wignall, Azure Business Lead at Microsoft UK, will answer those questions in this podcast.

In this episode we are focusing on OceanMind, a UK company that's using Microsoft's Azure cloud platform to help protect oceans and tackle illegal fishing across the world. The work undertaken by CEO Nick Wise and his staff has a positive impact on the sustainability of our planet and human rights issues.We chatted to Nick about innovation at OceanMind, and how his company, which is based in Oxford, can operate so successfully in countries on the other side of the planet.You will also hear from Eve Joseph, UK Responsibility Manager at Microsoft, about how start-ups are embracing innovative ways of working, and Microsoft's AI for Good programme.

Hello, and welcome to Microsoft Stories, a new podcast about technology and innovation.In this episode we hear about the Xbox Adaptive Controller, which makes it easier for people with limited mobility to play videogames.The controller allows gamers to connect to external buttons, switches, mounts and joysticks, giving them an easy-to-set-up and readily available way to play Xbox One or Windows 10 games.UK charities welcomed the device, as well as its packaging, which has been specially designed to be opened by gamers with limited mobility. The controller has received widespread praise, won a Golden Joystick Award and been included in a gallery devoted to groundbreaking design at the V&A museum in London.You will hear from Vivek Gohil, a 30-year-old gamer who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, who says the controller has allowed him to play his favourite games again. We also hear from Chris Kujawski, principal designer on the Microsoft Device Design Team, who worked on the Adaptive Controller.Click the play button and join us on our journey.

In this episode, we hear about Project Tokyo, an incredible solution for people who are blind that was created in Microsoft's Cambridge Research Lab.You will hear from Principal Researcher Cecily Morrison, who led a group that adapted a Microsoft HoloLens headset. When a person who is blind puts on the headset, it will call out the names of the people in the room with them.You will also hear from Hector Minto, Microsoft’s Accessibility Evangelist for Europe, about how technology is changing the way people with disabilities interact with the world, and how those people are increasingly creating their own digital solutions.

In this episode, we hear from Anna and Cameron McLean, who spent 43 days rowing across the Atlantic Ocean. When they had completed the 3,000-mile journey, they had set two world records: the first brother and sister to row across an ocean, and the fastest mixed-sex pair to row across the Atlantic.

Welcome to Microsoft Stories - a new podcast looking at technology and the people who use it.