key takeaways
- Microsoft will require employees to come to the office in person three times a week starting in February.
- However, Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleiman already requires his team of employees to be in the office four times a week.
- Suleiman also prefers open floor plans, where employees sit at open desks grouped into “neighborhoods” of 20 to 30 people.
Microsoft recently ordered that employees come to the office in person three days a week starting in February 2026 — but for employees on Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleiman’s team, working in person is already the norm for most of the week.
according to a report As revealed by Business Insider earlier this week, Suleiman requires employees on his team who live near the office to be there at least four days a week. Suleiman heads Microsoft AI, a division focused on Copilot and other consumer AI products and research. Officials who report directly to Suleiman must approve all exceptions to the in-office rule.
“I’m a big believer in the individualized work culture,” Suleman told Business Insider. He said it helps “defragment” teams and allows for collaboration.
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Not only does Suleiman require employees to work from the office more than other Microsoft employees, but he also prefers open floor plans, where employees sit at open desks grouped into “neighborhoods” of 20 to 30 people. In Suleiman’s words, this arrangement is “much better for collaboration”.
“Everyone can see everyone who is inside,” he told BI. “It creates a lot more informal collaboration. It’s much better.”
Most of Suleiman’s AI team at Microsoft is based in Silicon Valley rather than at the company’s Redmond, Washington headquarters. Suleiman himself splits his time between Silicon Valley and Redmond, emphasizing that Silicon Valley has a “huge talent density” and describing it as “the place to live” for his work and team.
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Apart from Suleman, other Microsoft teams working on AI have less strict office orders in person. Cloud and AI Group under Executive Vice President (EVP) of Microsoft Scott Guthrie There is no specific requirement to return to the office while CoreAI is under Group EVP Jai Parikh Per BI, the office will enforce guidelines three days a week in February.
It’s not clear how many people Suleiman has on his AI team, though the leaked organizational chart suggests he has at least 17 direct reports Like last month. Suleman joins Microsoft March 2024 From inflection ai, a $4 billion AI Startup That co-founding In March 2022. He was the co-founder of DeepMind, the first AI lab created by Google. acquired in 2014 For more than $500 million.
Last week, Microsoft announced This will create a new superintelligence team under Suleiman, who will be tasked with conducting advanced AI research and developing AI smarter than the most intelligent human minds, in direct competition with Meta’s superintelligence group. Suleiman said in a blog post He wants Microsoft’s superintelligence team to be “the best place in the world to research and build AI.”
key takeaways
- Microsoft will require employees to come to the office in person three times a week starting in February.
- However, Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleiman already requires his team of employees to be in the office four times a week.
- Suleiman also prefers open floor plans, where employees sit at open desks grouped into “neighborhoods” of 20 to 30 people.
Microsoft recently ordered that employees come to the office in person three days a week starting in February 2026 — but for employees on Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleiman’s team, working in person is already the norm for most of the week.
according to a report As revealed by Business Insider earlier this week, Suleiman requires employees on his team who live near the office to be there at least four days a week. Suleiman heads Microsoft AI, a division focused on Copilot and other consumer AI products and research. Officials who report directly to Suleiman must approve all exceptions to the in-office rule.
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