MICROSOFT HAS ANNOUNCED an investment in its Irish operations which will result in the creation of 550 new engineering and R&D jobs.

Microsoft first invested in Ireland in 1985 and the new Irish-based roles announced today means the company will employ more than 6,000 people across a multifunctional campus in Leopardstown, its data centre campus in Grange Castle, and LinkedIn.

The 550 new jobs will come on stream over the next three to four years, across areas such as software engineering, applied sciences, product management, program management, data science, design, technical writing and analytics.

However, 120 of these roles are available to apply for from today in software engineering, applied sciences, security research, product management and program management.

Microsoft added that the investment will see the company undertake “significant industrial research into Artificial Intelligence to develop critical, leading-edge technology in the area of AI and cyber security”.

This investment is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

Taoiseach Simon Harris welcomed today’s announcement and said it “not only highlights Ireland’s attractiveness as an investment destination, it also promises a significant boost for the AI ecosystem in Ireland”.

Haris further remarked: “Fostering AI skills and advancing capabilities in the field are core to the Government’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy and this project will help develop new specialist skills and expertise, thereby positioning Ireland for further investment in this critical area.”

Meanwhile, Microsoft Ireland’s Tara Roth said the new roles “span many of Microsoft’s future focused key product areas and services including Security, which is Microsoft’s top priority”.

Elsewhere, Microsoft Ireland’s James O’Connor said the investment builds on the company’s close to 40-year presence in Ireland.

“Ireland is undoubtedly an established hotbed of engineering and cyber security talent and leadership,” said O’Connor.

“The creation of 550 new roles enables us to further strengthen our presence here in Ireland and take AI and cyber security innovation to the next level,” he added.

The CEO of IDA Ireland Michael Lohan said the investment shows that “Ireland continues to prove itself as a location where the world’s most innovative AI companies build groundbreaking technologies”.

He added that it “also signals Microsoft’s enduring commitment to Ireland as the location of choice for pioneering, innovative and transformative projects of scale”.