If you’ve been studying for AI-900, the deadline is real: the exam retires June 30, 2026.
The decision is straightforward once you understand what’s changing.
The Certification Doesn’t Retire — Just the Exam
“Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Fundamentals” as a credential isn’t going away. Only the path to earn it is changing.
AI-900 disappears on June 30. AI-901 takes over as the only route to the same certification. If you already earned it, nothing changes — it stays on your transcript.
AI-901 Is Not a Renamed AI-900
This is the part that determines whether you should rush.
AI-900 is a conceptual exam. Five descriptive domains, no coding required, designed for technical and non-technical candidates alike:
| Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| AI workloads and considerations | 15–20% |
| Machine learning principles on Azure | 15–20% |
| Computer vision workloads on Azure | 15–20% |
| NLP workloads on Azure | 15–20% |
| Generative AI workloads on Azure | 20–25% |
AI-901 is implementation-heavy. Two domains, and more than half the exam is hands-on work in Azure:
| Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| AI concepts and responsibilities | 40–45% |
| Implement AI solutions with Microsoft Foundry | 55–60% |
Microsoft’s AI-901 exam page is explicit: candidates need Python coding knowledge, familiarity with REST APIs, SDKs, and CLIs. The exam tests whether you can deploy and interact with models in Azure AI Foundry, not just describe what they do.
Passing score for both: 700 out of 1000.
Take AI-900 Before June 30 If…
You’re already mid-prep. If you’ve put weeks into studying and you’re scoring consistently above 60% on practice questions, book it now. There’s no good reason to restart with a harder exam.
You don’t code. After June 30, earning “Azure AI Fundamentals” will require Python and hands-on work in Azure AI Foundry. If you’re in a non-technical role — project management, sales, cloud procurement — AI-900’s conceptual approach fits your situation. That window closes at the end of the month.
You want a foundation before role-based Azure certs. AI-900’s generative AI domain (20–25%) overlaps with content appearing in more advanced Azure exams. The cloud certification roadmap shows where it fits in a broader Microsoft path.
Wait for AI-901 If…
You haven’t started studying AI-900. If you’re starting from scratch today, rushing a conceptual fundamentals exam before June 30 isn’t the right trade. Go straight to AI-901.
You want the credential to stay relevant. AI-901 is built around Microsoft AI Foundry and the tooling Azure AI teams are using now: deploying models, building agents, working with multimodal inputs. The skills map more directly to current AI roles.
You’re in a technical role. AI-901’s Python and implementation requirements are a better fit for developers and data engineers already building on Azure. AI-900’s descriptive format won’t challenge you; AI-901’s hands-on sections will.
If You’re Taking AI-900: Where to Focus
The generative AI domain (20–25%) is the highest-weighted section and where candidates underperform most. Microsoft’s questions here are scenario-based, not definitional. “Which Azure service should you use to…” rather than “What is…”. Know the differences between Azure AI Foundry, Azure OpenAI Service, and the broader Azure AI catalog well enough to match a use case to the right tool.
The responsible AI section appears across multiple domains. Don’t skim it. Microsoft’s six principles (fairness, reliability and safety, privacy and security, inclusiveness, transparency, accountability) are tested through scenarios, not flashcards. A question describes a deployment decision and asks which principle is at stake.
Pass score: 700 out of 1000. Microsoft’s official AI-900 study guide covers every objective.
Pass-IT has AI-900 adaptive practice questions grounded in the current exam guide. Per-domain tracking shows exactly where you’re losing points before you book. Free trial, no credit card.
