Microsoft Unleashes Phi-2: A Game-Changing Small AI Model
Microsoft Research has released Phi-2, a small language model (SLM) with 2.7 billion parameters that demonstrates impressive performance for its size. Unlike large language models (LLMs) such as GPT and Gemini, SLMs are trained on a limited dataset with fewer parameters, making them more efficient for specific tasks like math and calculations. Phi-2 outperforms larger models in benchmarks for math, coding, and common sense reasoning. Microsoft's approach to AI also includes the development of custom chips, Maia and Cobalt, which support their vision of integrating AI and cloud computing. Phi-2's small size allows it to run locally on low-tier equipment, potentially paving the way for new applications and use cases. Its availability in the Azure AI Studio model catalog contributes to the democratization of AI research.