Microsoft unveils agentic platform tools

Microsoft used its Build conference on Tuesday to lay out a platform pitch for what it called the next phase of enterprise AI: agents connected to governed data, retrieval systems and execution layers. The company introduced Web IQ, Fabric IQ, Foundry IQ and Project Solara as parts of that stack, according to Microsoft’s Build live blog and third-party coverage. Microsoft paired the software announcements with performance claims for Fabric Data Warehouse, saying internal benchmarks showed up to 7x faster performance than three other major cloud warehouses and that UNC Health saw up to 5x faster query speeds on existing workloads. ### What did Microsoft actually announce? Microsoft’s Build event on June 2-3 in San Francisco and online is serving as the venue for the company’s latest developer and AI announcements, the company said in its Build live coverage. Third-party reports from CNET and Engadget said Microsoft introduced Web IQ, described as a search engine for AI agents, Fabric IQ, described as a shared semantic layer for enterprise data and systems, Foundry IQ, which connects enterprise retrieval with live web information, and Project Solara, which Engadget called a platform for agent-first systems. (news.microsoft.com) Microsoft’s own messaging around the event has emphasized agents as a software design pattern rather than a single product. In a Build-day post launching its new Command Line blog, Jay Parikh wrote that “agentic AI is here” and that “the traditional software development lifecycle is broken,” saying the focus is shifting from shipping code to “orchestrating systems.” (news.microsoft.com) ### Why did Fabric Data Warehouse stand out in the rollout? Microsoft’s Build live blog said Fabric Data Warehouse is being positioned as an execution layer for applications, AI agents and interactive reporting. The company said the service delivered up to 7x faster performance than three other major cloud data warehouses in internal benchmarking and cited UNC Health as seeing up to 5x faster query-speed improvements on existing workloads. (commandline.microsoft.com) Forbes, in a June 2 article by Robert Kramer, said Microsoft’s Build announcements centered on the infrastructure needed to operationalize AI inside enterprises rather than on new frontier models alone. Kramer wrote that the emphasis was on “data readiness, governance, interoperability and operational execution.” ### How does this fit Microsoft’s broader enterprise AI strategy? Microsoft has been building toward a common context and control layer for enterprise agents across multiple events. (news.microsoft.com) In its Ignite 2025 Book of News, the company said a “universal context layer” would combine Work IQ from Microsoft 365 Copilot with Fabric IQ and Foundry IQ so agents can understand user activity, business data and where to find information. The same document introduced Microsoft Agent 365 as a control plane for governing agents at scale. (forbes.com) That framing matches the Build message that enterprise AI depends on connecting models to permissions, data meaning and operational systems. Microsoft’s materials describe the challenge less as model access than as building the context, governance and execution environment around agents. ### What is Microsoft saying about how software work changes? Jay Parikh, Microsoft’s executive vice president for CoreAI, wrote on June 2 that engineering teams are moving from “manual review processes” and code-centric workflows toward runtime learning loops, reusable agent skills and system orchestration. (news.microsoft.com) He said engineers should “build agent-first by default” and treat context and skills as core assets. Those comments put Microsoft’s platform announcements in a broader product-development context. The company is presenting agents not only as assistants inside apps but as software components that need shared memory, retrieval, controls and repeatable workflows. ### What comes next? Microsoft said Build runs through June 3, with additional announcements and session details posted on its live event page. (commandline.microsoft.com) The company’s next disclosures on Web IQ, Fabric IQ, Foundry IQ, Project Solara and Fabric Data Warehouse are expected to appear there and in related developer posts from Microsoft’s Command Line and news sites. (news.microsoft.com)