Microsoft has announced its support for Google’s Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol, a recently unveiled open standard designed to enable AI "agents" to communicate and collaborate across different clouds, apps, and services. On Wednesday, Microsoft stated that it will integrate A2A into two of its AI development platforms, Azure AI Foundry and Copilot Studio. Additionally, the company has joined the A2A working group on GitHub to actively contribute to the protocol's development and associated tools. In a blog post, Microsoft highlighted the significance of this move, stating, "By supporting A2A and building on our open orchestration platform, we’re laying the foundation for the next generation of software—collaborative, observable, and adaptive by design." The company emphasized that the most effective agents will not be confined to a single application or cloud ecosystem but will instead operate seamlessly across various models, domains, and services. Google launched A2A in early April, and the protocol allows AI agents to coordinate their efforts by exchanging goals and invoking actions. It provides developers with a set of interoperable components to ensure secure and efficient collaboration among agents. Once A2A support is integrated into Azure AI Foundry and Copilot Studio, agents built on these platforms will be able to interact with external agents, including those developed with other tools or hosted outside of Microsoft. This interoperability means that a Microsoft agent could, for instance, schedule a meeting while a Google agent drafts the email invitations. Microsoft noted in its blog post, "Customers can build complex, multi-agent workflows that span internal agents, partner tools, and production infrastructure, while maintaining governance and service-level agreements." By aligning with the broader industry trend towards shared agent protocols, Microsoft aims to foster a more interconnected and efficient AI landscape. The interest in agentic technology, which involves AI entities working together autonomously, is growing rapidly. A recent KPMG survey indicates that 65% of companies are already experimenting with AI agents to enhance productivity. According to market research firm Markets and Markets, the AI agent segment is expected to expand from $7.84 billion in 2025 to $52.62 billion by 2030. Microsoft’s adoption of A2A follows its earlier support for the Model Control Protocol (MCP), a standard developed by Anthropic for integrating AI into data-resident systems. MCP was introduced to Copilot Studio earlier this year, and its adoption by Microsoft came shortly after other major AI model providers, such as Google and OpenAI, also pledged their support. This strategic move underscores Microsoft’s commitment to interoperability and collaboration in the AI space, aligning with the industry's push for standardized communication protocols among AI agents. By embracing both A2A and MCP, Microsoft positions itself as a key player in advancing the capabilities and interoperability of AI across diverse systems and applications. This approach not only enhances the functionality of its own platforms but also contributes to a more unified and productive AI ecosystem, benefiting both developers and enterprises alike.