Microsoft Azure

Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform operated by Microsoft Corporation, headquartered in Redmond, Washington. It provides enterprise cloud services for building and deploying applications, subject to US jurisdiction and the CLOUD Act.

EUNon-EU

Brand Identity Data

HQ Country
United States
HQ City
Redmond
Founded
2010
EU Headquartered
No
EU Manufactured
No
Ownership Type
subsidiary
Stock Exchange
NASDAQ
Tax Domicile
US
Ultimate Parent
Microsoft Corporation
Data Hosting
mixed
CLOUD Act Exposure
Yes ⚠️
AI Trains on User Data
partial
GDPR Status
compliant
DSA Designation
standard
Carbon Neutral
claimed
B Corp Certified
No
Supply Chain
partial
Repair / Recycling
Yes ✓
Ethical Certifications
None verified

Verified on August 2, 2026

Corporate Lineage

1975

Microsoft Founded

Microsoft Corporation established in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

1986

IPO

Microsoft completes initial public offering on NASDAQ.

2010

Azure Launch

Windows Azure (now Microsoft Azure) platform is officially launched.

2014

Satya Nadella Era

Satya Nadella becomes CEO, pivoting the company to a cloud-first, mobile-first strategy.

2023

EU Data Boundary

Launch of the EU Data Boundary for the Microsoft Cloud to store and process customer data in the EU.

European Alternatives to Microsoft Azure

I

Infomaniak

Infomaniak is a Swiss independent cloud provider headquartered in Geneva, offering web hosting, email, cloud storage, and productivity tools. It is carbon-neutral, 100% Swiss-owned, and operates exclusively from its own data centers in Switzerland.

Compare Microsoft Azure vs. Infomaniak
S

Scaleway

Scaleway is a French cloud platform owned by Iliad Group (founded by Xavier Niel), offering compute, storage, and AI infrastructure. Operating entirely from European data centers, it is GDPR-compliant by design and a strong alternative to AWS and DigitalOcean.

Compare Microsoft Azure vs. Scaleway
H

Hetzner

Hetzner is a German cloud and dedicated server provider, family-owned and headquartered in Gunzenhausen, Bavaria. It is widely known for its superior price-to-performance ratio and strict GDPR compliance, operating data centers exclusively in Germany and Finland.

Compare Microsoft Azure vs. Hetzner

Verification Sources

  1. [1]Microsoft Azure on Wikidata
  2. [2]Microsoft Azure website