Microsoft named a Leader in Gartner® Magic Quadrant for AI Application Development Platforms

We believe that this acknowledgment reflects our dedication to developing innovative agent frameworks, effective orchestration, and robust enterprise governance.

Acknowledgement for AI Innovation

Microsoft has been named a Leader in the 2025 Gartner® Magic Quadrant for AI Application Development Platforms, positioned furthest for Completeness of Vision. This recognition stems from our belief that the next generation of applications must be agent-based, and making a tangible impact necessitates more than flashy demonstrations. Companies need agents that leverage real data and tools, adept at managing business workflows while being governed with comprehensive, scalable oversight. Our focus on agent frameworks, orchestration, and governance makes this vision attainable and practical for every customer.

Why This Is Important

Gartner assesses vendors based on two key dimensions: Completeness of Vision (the platform’s direction) and Ability to Execute (its current performance). Being recognized for vision isn’t just about an ambitious roadmap; it’s about whether that vision translates into practical capabilities that customers require for the future of AI.

Microsoft Foundry serves as our integrated platform for creating, deploying, and managing AI applications. Over the last year, we’ve honed this platform in four crucial areas that our customers indicated separate production-level AI from simple proofs of concept:

• Real data, real tools. Agents are effective only if they can access valuable resources. Foundry IQ provides a secure API that connects agents to enterprise data. Moreover, Foundry Tools includes over 1,400 pre-built connections for processing documents, translations, speech, and business systems.
• Workflow integration, not just interaction. Transitioning from a chatbot to an agent requires shifting from simple Q&A to actionable outcomes. Foundry Agent Service enables multi-agent orchestration, allowing agents to assign tasks, coordinate decisions, and drive complete business processes—easily deployable into Copilot or your applications.
• Oversight and governance at scale. When agents operate independently, it’s essential to monitor their actions. Foundry Control Plane offers comprehensive visibility, audit trails, and policy enforcement. As the saying goes, “Trust, but verify,” and that requires the right tools.
• Models from cloud to edge. Create and run AI models where your workloads are—whether in the cloud or on the edge. You can fine-tune and deploy models from Foundry Models using enterprise-level GenAI operations, and then execute them on-device with Foundry Local for low-latency and offline needs.

With these important features, Foundry equips organizations with everything required to create AI applications and multi-agent systems on a large scale. That’s why we’ve made sure it integrates smoothly with the most widely-used tools. Foundry works seamlessly with development resources such as Visual Studio Code, GitHub, Azure, and productivity solutions like Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams, as well as the broader enterprise framework.

Putting Our Ideas into Practice: Our Agent-Driven Method

This year, Microsoft embraced a wholly new strategy for preparing our submission for AI Application Development Platforms. Rather than depending on manual data collection and coordination, we built bespoke agents tasked with gathering, organizing, and verifying all the necessary information for the evaluation.

How we created the agent:

The development of the agent is elaborated in a recent blog post, which discusses the technical framework and methodology used in its creation. Designed using the Microsoft Agent Framework, our open-source resource, these agents utilize advanced orchestration and multimodal content handling. They automate the complex process of assembling submission data, ensuring it’s both accurate and comprehensive while reducing the need for manual effort.

Key highlights:

The agent operates on a structured prompt and workflow, as outlined here. It seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Foundry’s platform-as-a-service (PaaS) model, offering both pay-as-you-go and provisioned throughput options.

Advantages of our agent-driven process:

By automating the submission process, the agent enhanced both data accuracy and transparency. This allowed our experts to concentrate on strategic insights rather than manual data gathering. The system was more efficient, minimized the chances of mistakes, and guaranteed that our submission was both comprehensive and current.

This innovation is a demonstration of Microsoft’s commitment to excellence and ongoing enhancement, giving our customers increased confidence in the quality and reliability of our AI solutions. By simplifying critical processes, Microsoft ensures that updates are accurate, transparent, and timely, allowing organizations to make informed decisions and foster innovation with enterprise-grade AI platforms that adhere to compliance and security standards.

Empowering Businesses with Microsoft Foundry

We believe that our recognition in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for AI Application Development Platforms signifies Microsoft’s dedication to empowering organizations in developing robust, scalable, and intelligent AI solutions. The agent-driven submission process showcases our commitment to innovation, transparency, and community engagement.

Over 80,000 businesses, including enterprises and software development firms across healthcare, manufacturing, and retail sectors, are utilizing Foundry to implement transformative solutions, from predictive insights in supply chains to personalized customer experiences. These success stories demonstrate how Foundry drives innovation while maintaining trust and compliance.

Genie offers healthcare providers a way to use AI to communicate with patients via their preferred channels, significantly reducing administrative burdens and costs while providing patients with timely answers.

Sidd Shah, Vice President of Strategy & Business Growth, healow

With Genix Copilot, we’ve harnessed generative and agentic AI to transform operations from the shop floor to the top. This innovation has dramatically cut troubleshooting time by 60-80%, revolutionizing industrial performance and promoting environmental goals.

Rajesh Ramachandran, Global Chief Digital Officer, Process Automation, ABB

Foundry Agent Service and Microsoft Agent Framework effectively link our agents to data and each other, while the governance and oversight provided by Microsoft Foundry are essential for success in a regulated industry.

Sebastian Stöckle, Global Head of Audit Innovation and AI, KPMG International

Microsoft leads in AI-powered shopping, and with Ask Ralph, we’re merging fashion and technology to redefine consumers’ shopping experiences.

Naveen Seshadri, Chief Digital Officer, Ralph Lauren

We extend our gratitude to our customers and partners for making this achievement possible. We’re excited about supporting your growth using Microsoft Foundry.

Explore Resources for Your AI Journey

*Gartner, Magic Quadrant for AI Application Development Platforms, 17 November 2025

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