Microsoft has reported that its profit rose 20% for the January-March quarter as it tries to position itself as a leader in applying artificial intelligence technology to make workplaces more productive. The company reported quarterly profit of $21.93 billion, or $2.94 per share, beating Wall Street expectations for earnings of $2.82 a share. The Redmond, Washington-based software maker posted revenue of $61.86 billion in the period, its third fiscal quarter, up 17% from the same period a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet expected Microsoft to post revenue of $60.86 billion for the quarter.