In 1991, Richard “Rick” Rashid was recruited by Microsoft to establish Microsoft Research. Despite initial doubts, he was convinced by Nathan Myhrvold and Gordon Bell to join. During his tenure, he emphasized the importance of basic research and its long-term value, advocating for pushing the frontiers of knowledge and the need for collaboration between researchers and product teams. During this exclusive interview, Rick highlights significant achievements, such as the development of a search engine and advancements in speech-to-speech translation using deep neural networks. He also reflects on the growth and global expansion of Microsoft Research.
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Dennis Adler played a pivotal role in shaping Microsoft's iconic products like Windows 95 and TrueType. From his early days in Los Angeles, Dennis shares his journey to working at Microsoft and “smoke jumping” from challenge to the next to solve problems and advance many of the company’s products to his final role in Microsoft Research.
Photo courtesy of Dennis Adler
