• Aerial view of a farm -- green pastures, barns, and grazing cattle.

    Closing the rural broadband gap

    Many rural areas lack broadband access, limiting their ability to thrive in a digital economy. The Airband Initiative brings affordable broadband access to everyone.

  • Two people walking through a busy street in Kenya

    Empowering rural Kenya with affordable internet

    Mawingu Networks provides affordable internet connectivity to help communities in rural Kenya gain access to online public services and digital economic opportunities.

Our mission

The Microsoft Airband Initiative advances digital equity—access to affordable internet, affordable devices, and digital skills—as a platform for empowerment and digital transformation across the world.

A large green sprayer vehicle sits in front of a field of corn.

Eliminating the US rural broadband gap

Microsoft has developed a strategic approach that brings together private and public-sector organizations to help address the needs of millions of people who live in rural America and lack access to broadband.

Learn about the rural strategy
A young child smiling outside in a suburban neighborhood.

Addressing racial and digital inequity

Airband is expanding to US cities that face some of the largest broadband gaps among communities of color. Our approach focuses on providing access to affordable broadband, devices, and digital skilling tools and resources.

Learn about the urban strategy
A Kenyan woman and Sun Culture representative examine an irrigation tool.

Closing the global digital divide

Nearly all of the unconnected are in markets outside the United States, mainly in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Learn how we are working with partners in Kenya to improve rural productivity and livelihood in communities that would otherwise not have access to these technological opportunities.

Play video about our efforts

Our projects around the world

Featured projects

Tower in a rural area of California, rolling hills of evergreen trees extend far into the horizon.

United States

Cal.net delivers high-speed internet to California's rural Sierra Mountain foothills and Central Valleys, focusing especially on areas comprising over one million residences and small businesses that have historically lacked access to high-speed internet.

A teacher enthusiastically shows students something on a tablet computer in a Ghanaian classroom.

Ghana

In Eastern Ghana, Bluetown is delivering affordable broadband to over 800,000 people in rural areas. Using technologies like TV white spaces, Bluetown is enabling local businesses and schools to access digital services.

An Indian family sits on a bed enjoying content on a tablet.

India

Veriown brings Internet-connect solar energy to areas without access to a power grid. Using technology that provides electricity and internet through a single device, Veriown provides communities with access to online education and commerce.

Through open shutter windows, workers can be seen manning computers inside a simple Kenyan office building.

Kenya

Using low-cost technologies, Mawingu Networks connects people to the internet for as little as one dollar per month. Lower infrastructure costs make it more affordable for people to access the internet and participate in the digital economy.

In the news

Learn more about the Microsoft Airband Initiative and explore the latest news and updates.

A student, supervised by an adult, works at a laptop computer in a classroom setting.

An essential component of the COVID-19 recovery

This opinion piece outlines a need for investment in innovative wireless technologies, public and private partnerships, and flexible financial models to close the broadband gap.

Learn about this approach
Family in a home sitting on couches and watching a football game

How high-speed internet is reshaping lives

In rural America, access to high-speed internet is fundamental in an increasingly digital and connected world but is often taken for granted in urban areas.

Learn about this initiative
Four young boys crowded together, looking at one tablet device on a table

The path to prosperity through access to high-speed internet

Through partnerships and initiatives, Microsoft is committed to closing the digital divide once and for all by connecting everyone in the world to the internet.

Learn more about this approach
Four young adults commune at a table in an open office with their laptops.

Working together to bring connectivity to military Veterans

Microsoft is expanding its work with Veterans Affairs to bring broadband access, digital skills training, and telehealth services to Veterans living in rural areas.

Learn more about this plan
A sweeping American landscape shows fields of grain and a farmhouse in the foreground against a backdrop of trees and distant hills.

Stepping up our efforts to close the rural broadband gap

With the early progress of the Airband Initiative, we are raising our goal. We will now work to extend broadband access to 3 million Americans in rural areas by July 2022.

Learn more about our new goal