Microsoft is launching the first startup accelerator in the company’s history in an effort to encourage more entrepreneurs to build their cloud-based applications using Windows Azure.

Microsoft has launched its first-ever startup accelerator at its Israel R&D Center, with an expressed purpose of helping young cloud-focused companies.

The accelerator, which will rely heavily upon Microsoft's Azure cloud service, will be a four-month program designed for early stage startups doing big things in cloud, Web, and mobile.

The entrepreneurial scene in the UK , particularly in London, is waking up and beginning to blossom.

500 Israeli start ups joined the BizSpark cloud computing program .

It's International Women's Day and Siliconrepublic.com is tipping its hat to eight of the world's top women in technology .

The VC/Emerging Business Lead Bindi Karia calls herself a “child of the world” and her unusual background has certainly played a role in her success. Read more

Microsoft announced on 1st March the launch of BizSpark Plus, a program for business investors and startups in Singapore. Read more

The tech startup environment in China is far more difficult than Silicon Valley, and if foreign entrepreneurs want any shot at success, having the right partners and network connections will be necessary. Read more

At the DEMO Asia conference for startups in Singapore, Microsoft sponsored booths for a group of young Asian firms. The entrepreneurs at the event said the program was the main reason they now build on Microsoft products. Read more

Kiwi founder Alexei Dunayev announced he would be offering transcripts of every other pitch at the conference, for free, via his company’s forthcoming mobile app. Read more

Why Microsoft is backing a technology incubator for teens, an idea that Daniel Brusilovsky came up with at 15 years old. Read more