Microsoft's revenue grew 16% in first quarter of 2024: Cloud business boosted results

Microsoft Corp. has unveiled its first-quarter results for 2024, highlighting the company's increasing reliance and focus on artificial intelligence (AI) services. For the quarter ending September 30, 2024, Microsoft reports a revenue of $65.6 billion, a notable 16% increase compared to the same period last fiscal year.

The tech giant's operating income reached $30.6 billion, reflecting a 14% growth, while its net income rose to $24.7 billion, marking an 11% increase. A significant contributor to this growth was Microsoft Cloud, which saw a revenue increase of 22%, generating $38.9 billion in the quarter. Notably, the Intelligent Cloud subsegment accounted for $24.1 billion, representing a 20% increase.

In a press statement, CEO Satya Nadella remarked, “AI-driven transformation is changing work, work artifacts, and workflow across every role, function, and business process”. While Microsoft embraces these changes and capitalizes on them, the company remains mindful of the risks associated with AI. The forward-looking statements issued in the earnings report highlight potential challenges, including competition, cybersecurity threats, and regulatory scrutiny.

The report also highlights contributions from the More Personal Computing segment, which achieved revenues of $13.2 billion—up 17%. Notably, Xbox content and services revenue surged by 61%, significantly boosted by the recent Activision acquisition.

These results align with trends observed among other tech giants, such as Google, which reported a 35% increase in cloud revenue.