Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer spoke at Stanford University’s Memorial Hall in front of thousands of students, giving hints as to what the company’s next steps in the search engine market will be to compete with Google and gain a better position in advertising.
“We are going to have to be more disruptive,” Microsoft’s CEO said in response to a question at the end of his speech, pointing at Live Search Cashback as an example and hinting that changes will soon come in terms of user interface as well as with new partnerships with content creators.
According to Ballmer, there is a lot more innovation to do in software. His top technology trends for the moment include multicore processors, “screens everywhere” (PC, smartphone and TV), and natural user interfaces. Ballmer also said his company would invest an overall $9 billion in research and development this year.
