Seoul, Nov 9 (IANS): Samsung Electronics has stepped up efforts to increase cooperation with Microsoft in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Cloud computing for its devices including smartphones.

According to a report in retailnews.asia on Thursday, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong met Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella this week as he delivered a keynote speech at Microsoft Korea's "Future Now" AI conference on Wednesday.

They met and agreed to step up partnership in artificial intelligence, cloud computing and big data, a Samsung spokesman was quoted a saying. "Microsoft currently uses Samsung's semiconductors for Cloud servers, and Samsung could sell more of its chips to the American partner in the near future," the report added.

According to media reports, Samsung is also looking to use Microsoft Cloud services on some devices, including smartphones. Samsung already uses Microsoft Azure Cloud platform for its system air conditioners to collect data. During his keynote speech, Nadella talked about Samsung.

"Take the example of Samsung Electronics' IoT-based air conditioner that runs on Azure. By taking into account environmental factors, like the number of people, the smart air conditioner can save up to 25 per cent in energy and 30 per cent in costs," the Microsoft CEO was quoted as saying.

The development came on the heels of Samsung this week unveiling its first foldable smartphone and opening up its digital assistant Bixby for developers.