In recent years, with the rapid development of artificial intelligence, Python has swept the list of programming languages, becoming one of the most popular and widely used programming languages and the standard language for RESEARCHING AI.
After six and a half years at Dropbox, Guido Van Rossum, the creator of Python, abruptly announced his retirement from the Python core last October.
Today, he officially announced on Twitter that he was too bored to retire and had joined Microsoft’s developer group to “ensure better use of Python (not just Windows).
Along with Typescript/C# founder Anders, VS Code/Eclipse founder Eric, and Linux GNOME author Miguel, he works on the team of Microsoft worldwide SVP zheng lei pan.
To say that Van Rossum, best known as the creator of the popular open source language Python, was caught off guard would be an understatement.
Under the tweet, Anders Hejlsberg (Delphi, C#, Typescript inventor) expressed his desire to work with Guido van Rossum.
“We’re excited to add him to the developer group,” a Microsoft spokesperson said. “Microsoft is committed to contributing to and growing with the Python community, and Guido’s hiring is an expression of that commitment.”
Why did he retire to join Microsoft? Is it really just boredom?
Committed to open Source
Microsoft, one of the most active corporate open source contributors among its peers, is now GitHub’s owner. It’s not clear what Van Rossum will be doing at Microsoft, but he points out:
I decided that retirement was boring, so I joined Microsoft’s developer department. What to do? So many choices! But it certainly makes Python better to use (and not just on Windows). There’s a lot of open source.
Van Rossum founded Python in 1989. Python is one of the most widely used languages in the world. It is the foundation language for one of the most important software stacks in the world: Linux, Apache, MySQL, Python/Perl/PHP (LAMP). Python shows no signs of slowing down due to its use in machine learning (ML).
** Over the years, regardless of company or title, Van Rossum has worked to improve Python. ** These include:
- Zope, a Python-based Web application server organization;
- Google;
- Dropbox, a Personal cloud storage company based on Python.
Why did Microsoft hire Van Rossum?
Microsoft has little active interest in Python due to its “not invented here” attitude. But as Microsoft began to work more with open source and the cloud, the company changed its stance:
Microsoft first used Python tools for Visual Studio (PTVS) to use Python in 2010, and then in. IronPython running on NET.
By 2018, support Python in developer tools such as Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code, host it in Azure Notebooks, and use it to build end-user experiences such as Azure CLI.”
That’s true today more than ever. Hiring Van Rossum is the smartest move Microsoft could have made to both cement its position as a leading software development company and become a true believer in open source.
Meanwhile, Guido van Rossum’s addition to Microsoft’s embrace of open source is a great addition. Together, we look forward to Guido Van Rossum’s future at Microsoft.