From providing some of the first seaplanes for the U.S. military during World War II to making key innovations to commercial airplanes, Boeing has been at the forefront of aerospace engineering since its beginnings. Now the company is partnering with some of the biggest tech companies in the world to continue making advances in the industry.
On Wednesday, Boeing announced that it will partner with Amazon Web Services, Microsoft and Google Cloud in a “multi-cloud partnership.”
Although Amazon already has a standing partnership with Boeing to use its aircraft to expedite shipping, a new partnership between the aerospace company and Amazon’s IT subsidiary Amazon Web Services (AWS) will see the two companies work to “transform aerospace design and manufacturing.”
“Today’s announcement represents a significant investment in Boeing’s digital future. Our work with AWS will help us advance Boeing’s people, products and services by enabling everyone with the latest tools, technology and expertise,” Susan Doniz, Boeing’s chief information officer, said in a statement. “Our cloud strategy removes infrastructure restraints, allowing for more ownership within teams, simplifies our processes, creates easier and more secure access to information and empowers our people to perform their best.”
With AWS, Boeing is set to migrate its computer services and applications from its off-site servers to ones owned by the tech giant. According to AWS, the move will improve Boeing’s operations and customer support.
Besides the new data partnership, the two companies have collaborated in the past. In January, Amazon acquired 11 Boeing aircraft in order to facilitate its shipping operations.
Microsft and Boeing have also collaborated in past years. In 2016 the two worked on an AI project that was powered by Microsoft Azure and optimized key factors for Boeing’s planes, including maintenance and fuel optimization. With the new partnership announced Wednesday, Microsoft and Boeing will continue to use AI to optimize key infrastructure in Boeing aircraft, according to a statement from Microsoft.
“Boeing and Microsoft have been working together for more than two decades, and this partnership builds on that history to support Boeing’s digital future by helping it optimize operations and develop digital solutions that will benefit the global aviation industry,” Judson Althoff, EVP and chief commercial officer at Microsoft, said in a statement.
Boeing’s partnership with Google Cloud allows the aerospace company to work in the cloud meaning it can design and deploy applications and solutions throughout the company. It also gives Boeing access to data analytics and ML and AI tools.
