The Four IQs of Modern Agents
The next generation of intelligent agents is built around a simple idea: route each question to the right source of context instead of trying to carry every answer inside the model.
Modern agents use a four-IQ pattern to do that.
Foundry IQ
Foundry IQ generates unified context using agentic retrieval across multiple knowledge sources (indexed and remote). Agents can issue multiple search queries through MCP to the Azure AI Search Knowledge Base and merge results from search index, OneLake, SharePoint, and MCP into a single ranked answer set. That means policies, documents, memories, and knowledge bases are unlocked dynamically without bloating the model.
Fabric IQ
Fabric IQ connects agents to structured business data where the truth lives. It brings together unified data (structured, unstructured, event, graph), semantic models for business intelligence, and operational intelligence with real-time ontologies. This is how agents understand how your business operates.
Work IQ
Work IQ provides workplace intelligence designed for the unique needs of agents. It is optimized for high-volume agentic reasoning and tool-calling with speed, efficiency, and scale. Work IQ continuously structures high-quality context across people, collaboration, and workflows, while preserving enterprise security and governance by operating directly on data in place.
Web IQ
Web IQ grounds agents in the real world with a suite of grounding APIs for web, news, images, video, and browse. Built for the AI era, it delivers quality answers users can trust, sub-200ms grounding speed, and token efficiency through passage-level ranking.
Microsoft IQ
Microsoft IQ combines Work IQ, Fabric IQ, Foundry IQ, and Web IQ into a unified intelligence platform for enterprise AI.
