Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices, Windows Experience Blog

Ignite 2025: Windows at the frontier of work

Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 16:03:17 +0000

Welcome to the new frontier

Every year at Microsoft Ignite, we are reminded of the extraordinary community that powers the world’s organizations. Whether you’re an IT professional, developer or business decision-maker, your work drives how people connect, create and achieve. This week marks 40 years of Windows—a legacy of innovation that has shaped work for decades. Now, we’re building on that foundation to reimagine Windows for what’s next. Last year at Ignite, we introduced the “Era of AI.” This year, we’re evolving Windows to empower people to easily, securely and confidently leverage the full power of AI. Whether it’s incorporating AI tools in their workflow or choosing to use AI agents to perform tasks on their behalf, Windows is becoming the canvas for AI—embedding intelligence into the system, silicon and hardware, so organizations can move from experimentation to execution at scale. And, with leading AI innovation from first and third party partners on Windows, Windows remains an open platform, offering customers choice and control. The world’s most ambitious organizations—what we call Frontier Firms—are already embracing AI in their daily workflows. They blend human ingenuity with intelligent systems to deliver real outcomes. Our ambition: make Windows the platform that empowers every organization to lead with confidence, speed and innovation. With security, identity, management and AI built in—not bolted on—Windows and Microsoft 365 provide a trusted, integrated foundation for AI-driven work at enterprise scale. You choose what AI tools to enable for who and when, offering greater flexibility and control to deploy as you and your teams are ready. This is all built on the foundation that your organizations expect from Windows—improved reliability, performance and fundamentals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbpfbL3_C3g Prerelease AI interactions shown; subject to change. Sequences shortened for demonstration purposes. This aligns with our announcements that we’re previewing at Ignite this yearⁱ:

Evolving the Windows platform: With native agent infrastructure, Windows provides secure agent connectors (preview) and a dedicated agent workspace (preview) to help agents operate safely on devices and in the cloud. This integration isn’t just about adding agents; it’s about making them part of the OS experience. By embedding agent capabilities into core Windows services, Copilot and other agents are able to orchestrate tasks across apps, files and system functions while the operating system is built to help ensure user security, consent and control. Windows 365 for Agents (preview) extends this foundation to the cloud, enabling computer-using agents to work on secure, scalable Cloud PCs. When enabled, this lets agent makers focus on innovation, not infrastructure.
Bringing agents into your flow: Windows is now your canvas for AI and agents with Ask Copilot (preview) and Agents on the taskbar (preview). By putting Microsoft 365 Copilot, AI agents and search on the taskbar—in your flow of work—Windows makes AI assistance easier than ever to use. You can invoke any agents your organization makes available to you — first or third party, with a quick prompt and then monitor their progress using familiar UX patterns like hover, badges and notifications, allowing you to move on to other tasks while your agents are working for you.
Cloud-powered flexibility: Windows 365 has expanded to meet the needs of every organization and employee, introducing embedded AI, enhanced Frontline support, Windows 365 Reserve (generally available) and a migration API that simplifies moving from Azure VM to Windows 365 Cloud PCs.
More secure and resilient: Post-Quantum Cryptography (generally available), Zero Trust DNS (generally available), passkey manager integration with Windows Hello (generally available), Windows Cloud IO Protection (preview), Intune management of Windows Recovery (preview coming mid-2026), Point-in-time restore (preview) and more strengthen the security and resiliency of your organizations.

These innovations are already transforming how organizations work and deliver measurable benefits today, not just promises for tomorrow. One example is Levi Strauss & Co, a brand with over 170 years of heritage, leading one of the most ambitious digital transformations with a full stack of Microsoft solutions including: Windows 11, Surface Copilot+ PCs, Copilot Agents, Windows 365 and Windows 365 Link devices, and Microsoft Intune. Read more about their journey. And it’s not just companies; our partners are seeing impact too. Manus AI is leveraging Windows 365 for Agents to power next-generation experiences: “Windows 365 for Agents provides the secure, scalable and always-available compute foundation that Manus AI needs to thrive,” said Xiao Hong, CEO of Manus AI. “By harnessing the power of the Cloud PC, our general AI agent can operate with greater agility, responsiveness and reach—empowering users to access intelligent assistance wherever they work.” https://youtu.be/rv7kq4CFpko

Intelligence and governance at scale

Over our 40 years together, Windows has continually developed to meet people’s needs at work. Now we are evolving into an operating system for people and agents, one designed for intelligence and governance at scale. Traditional computing has been a series of steps, keystrokes and mouse clicks. With agents on Windows, you simply express your desired outcome, and agents handle the complexity. And because every organization approaches AI differently, Windows gives you the choice and control to decide how agents fit into your workflow so when you use them, you can do so with confidence and transparency. To deliver agentic experiences at scale, you need an operating system designed for it, not a patchwork of apps and middleware. Today’s ecosystem is fragmented:

Users need consistent controls and better discoverability.
Enterprises need security and manageability to deploy agents with confidence.
Developers need tools and libraries to build and make their servers easily discoverable to agents without doing bespoke work for each platform.

Solving this isn’t about adding another layer. It requires OS-level integration for security, consent and control. Windows will have native agent infrastructure that will enable you to:

Invoke and manage agents directly from your taskbar.
Manage your digital workforce with built-in governance.
Allow agents to raise questions and provide updates through secure notifications.

And now, we’re introducing new foundational OS capabilities, coming soon in preview, that enable agents with your permission and control to act on your behalf, safely and effectively, and to help you achieve your goals.

Agent connectors, now in preview, are powered by Model Context Protocol (native support for MCP announced at Microsoft Build 2025), and provide a standardized framework for any AI agents, first or third party, to connect to apps and tools to complete tasks for you.
Agent workspace (preview) provides a contained, policy-controlled and auditable environment where agents can interact with software with their own identity much like humans do, performing tasks on your behalf in parallel without disrupting your primary session.
Windows 365 for Agents (preview) extends agentic capabilities to the cloud, so businesses can accelerate AI adoption and scale AI workloads without compromising compliance or productivity.

These innovations are built directly into Windows 11 with the governance and security controls you already know and trust:

Policy-driven control: IT admins can define guardrails for consent, control and auditability across agentic workflows.
Enterprise integration: Centralized management through Intune and Entra helps ensure that AI agents operate within organizational security, compliance and governance standards.
Secure by Design: OS primitives enforce containment and compliance, making agentic interactions more secure than traditional apps.

With this foundation, Windows delivers agentic innovation at scale—secure, auditable and ready for enterprise deployment, and we are already collaborating with numerous agent builders and application developers utilizing the agentic platform on Windows to create advanced AI solutions with MCP. Manus is an AI-powered general productivity agent that helps users with varied tasks such as creating websites, organizing files and generating content through simple prompts and secure integrations. Manus leverages MCP on Windows, enables users to build a website in minutes—directly from content stored on their PC—without uploading files or switching apps. The agent uses the File Explorer connector to fetch content and execute tasks entirely within the Windows security model. Beyond website creation, Manus can organize files, generate content and manage information through simple prompts and explicit user approval. This demonstrates the core value of MCP on Windows: enabling agents to act intelligently while keeping enterprise data protected and workflows more seamless. https://youtu.be/oWtm_dgtbAc Claude by Anthropic is an AI productivity agent on platforms including Windows that helps users handle multi-step tasks efficiently. By connecting to File Explorer—with user consent—Claude can quickly find relevant documents like meeting notes and status updates, then generate summaries or reports in minutes. In a typical use case, Claude gathers all necessary files and produces an executive summary of a project, which can be sent directly through Outlook. This process saves time and maintains user privacy and control, showing how intelligent agents can streamline everyday work. https://youtu.be/oNAEW6N0aRg Learn more here: Ignite 2025: Furthering Windows as the premier platform for developers, governed by security.

Making Copilot a dynamic hub for agents on Windows

The new Ask Copilot on the taskbar (preview) provides a unified entry point that fluidly connects Microsoft 365 Copilot, agents and search. This makes Copilot and agents feel like a natural part of how you use your PC, turning everyday interactions into moments of productivity and impact.

One-click access to Copilot from your taskbar: This opt-in experience is the most integrated and natural way to engage with Copilot through voice or text in the way that works best for you. Commercial users will have all the power of their Work IQ as contextual information that they can reference in their Copilot chats and with Microsoft 365 AI Agents.
Invoke agents: You’ll be able to invoke agents directly from Ask Copilot on the taskbar using the tools button or by typing "@."
Streamlined search experience: Lightning-fast results in a refreshed design makes finding apps, files and settings easier.

Agents on the taskbar make agents more visible and accessible across Windows

As Windows evolves into a canvas for AI, agents are deeply integrated across the OS, extending the same contracts that apps use today to new surfaces and scenarios. With Agents on the taskbar, agents will become as easy to use and common as applications on Windows. You will be able to invoke, monitor and manage Copilot and AI agents like Microsoft 365 Researcher directly from the Windows taskbar. This unified agentic experience makes AI agents more visible, accessible and interactive across Windows. After initiating an agent task, either directly from the Microsoft 365 Copilot app or Ask Copilot on the taskbar, the agent will show as an icon with status badging and a hover card for progress and context. From there, you can easily monitor the progress of agents without disrupting your work, making the taskbar a dynamic hub that helps you accomplish more with less effort—bringing intelligent productivity into the flow of work. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C37UQU6L6_o Prerelease AI interactions shown; subject to change. Sequences shortened for demonstration purposes.

Delivering AI that matters with new capabilities for Microsoft 365 Copilot on Windows, Edge for Business and Copilot+ PCs

Voice in Microsoft 365 Copilot helps users quickly capture ideas for brainstorming, drafting responses or preparing meetings. Simply say “Hey Copilot” (available in Frontier in the coming weeks) or press the Copilot key to open the quick view input box to activate voice. This allows you to tap into Copilot without any interruption of switching apps and windows. Start a back-and-forth conversation with Copilot, receiving real-time spoken responses based on both web and work data. Copilot is available right from your taskbar, and now highly contextual help extends to other Windows surfaces like File Explorer—where it can take contextual actions like summarizing files, creating briefs and even drafting emails with Microsoft 365 Copilot. Microsoft Edge for Business is trusted by top customers for most of their browsing minutes. And now, Microsoft is redefining the enterprise browser for the AI era—introducing AI browsing with Copilot Mode (private preview). This new experience transforms workflows, while delivering enterprise-grade security, compliance and controls at every level. AI is integrated directly into core browsing tasks, delivering agentic, proactive and contextual intelligence that supports daily work. With features like Agent mode, a Copilot-inspired New Tab page and additional new AI features—such as multi-tab reasoning—located outside of Copilot Mode, your workforce can move faster, reduce friction and stay focused on what matters most. And because Edge for Business is deeply integrated with the Microsoft Graph, these AI capabilities are uniquely positioned to understand your data and workflows—delivering intelligent assistance exactly where work happens. When you are on a Copilot+ PC, you get even more value, Copilot+ PC customers are more satisfied than on any other Windows deviceⁱⁱ. With better battery life, faster performance and exclusive experiences powered by the 40 TOPS NPU, employees who use Copilot+ PCs are saving on average five hours per weekⁱⁱⁱ. Quickly search across local and cloud files by simply describing what you’re looking for with the improved Windows Search (preview) and Microsoft 365 integration. And Click to Do just got more capable with expanded AI actions, like turning any table on your screen into an Excel table (preview).

What’s new: AI in Windows 11 and Copilot+ PCs:

Writing assistance (preview): Rewrite and compose capabilities for any text box in any app, plus offline support on Copilot+ PCs.
Outlook summary (preview): AI-generated summaries in Outlook.
Word auto alt-text (preview): Automatic alt-text for images in Office documents for accessibility.
Fluid dictation^iv (preview): AI-powered voice feature that turns speech into polished text, correcting grammar, punctuation and filler words in real time.

Work anywhere: Cloud-powered flexibility

Of course, productivity doesn't stop at the device. To meet the demands of flexible work, Windows is extending AI innovations to the cloud, delivering flexibility without compromise. With Windows 365 for Agents, agent makers can create enterprise-ready agents that run on secure, policy-controlled Cloud PCs streamed from the Microsoft Cloud. This means organizations can accelerate AI adoption and scale workloads without compromising compliance or productivity. It powers advanced AI initiatives and partner solutions as the execution platform for agents built in Microsoft Copilot Studio’s Computer Use capability, ensuring seamless actions in a full Windows environment. Researcher with Computer Use in Microsoft 365 Copilot is the first supported Microsoft solution that leverages Cloud PCs running a Linux environment, allowing users to automate website navigation and actions.

Leading builders like Manus AI, Fellou, Genspark, Simular and TinyFish are already piloting Windows 365 for Agents. For example, Manus AI is using non-domain-joined Cloud PCs to deliver intelligent PowerPoint creation and editing, citing Windows 365 for Agents as the secure, scalable foundation enabling agility and reach.

Customers have been asking for more ways to take advantage of the flexibility and security of Cloud PCs. To meet that need, we’re introducing Windows 365 Cloud Apps and User Experience Sync (both generally available) to Windows 365 Frontline. These capabilities let IT admins deliver line of business apps without streaming the full desktop, reducing overhead while maintaining the same security and compliance benefits of Windows 365. With User Experience Sync, application settings and configurations persist for each user across sessions, ensuring a consistent experience and simplifying management—even in frontline scenarios where efficiency and reliability are critical. New Windows 365 AI-enabled Cloud PCs (preview) include some of the unique AI experiences of Copilot+ PCs, like improved Windows search which helps you find your content using descriptive words and Click to Do which provides helpful shortcuts with relevant actions to take on text and images. IT admins can prompt Microsoft Security Copilot in Intune to ask questions about their Windows 365 Cloud PCs, and to support performance and license optimization. This delivers a unified AI experience across end-user and IT workflows: Microsoft 365 Copilot runs on Cloud PCs, Windows 365 for Agents, AI-enabled Cloud PCs and Copilot in Intune for admin capabilities.

Additional announcements for Windows in the cloud:

Regional Host Pools: Remove cross-region dependencies in the connectivity platform, coming soon.
Microsoft Hosted Network (MHN): Enable multi-region Cloud PC distribution to reduce single-region dependencies, coming soon (Windows 365 only).
Multipath (generally available): Delivers seamless failover and boost connection by using multiple simultaneous network paths.
External identities (B2B) support (generally available): Secured B2B logins for contractors and partners, simplifying collaboration without sacrificing compliance.
Windows Cloud I/O protection (public preview): Newest capabilities add advanced input protection against keylogging malware and keystroke injection attacks.

To make it even easier to onboard to Windows 365, a new migration API (generally available) enables customers and partners to build custom tools that simplify and streamline the move from Azure Virtual Desktop and other Azure VMs to Cloud PCs. And as organizations make that transition, we’re also expanding the device portfolio to give users more choice in how they experience Cloud PCs. Windows 365 Link, the first Cloud PC device from Microsoft, is now generally available in 13 countries and expanding to Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Singapore and Spain starting in February 2026. And looking ahead, we’re partnering with major commercial PC OEMs to further scale into a portfolio of Windows 365 Cloud PC devices and will have more details to come in early 2026.

Key updates for Windows 365 Link:

Support for pairing Bluetooth® devices during Cloud PC device out-of-box experience, making setup faster for desk-based or frontline workers (generally available early 2026).
Support for tenant branding: IT can set a custom wallpaper, logo and name on Cloud PC device sign-in screens (generally available early 2026).
Bare metal recovery: IT can restore Cloud PC devices using a bare metal recovery image, providing one more way for devices to be recovered in case IT needs to join them to another tenant (generally available early 2026).
Webex by Cisco (preview coming first half of 2026) and Zoom are actively working to enable high-fidelity meetings on Cloud PC devices.

Security and resilience at every layer

Flexibility and intelligence only matter if they're secured. That's why Windows continues strengthening its foundation with new layers of protection for every organization. Businesses face relentless threats, from cyberattacks to risks like hardware failures and accidental data loss. That’s why Windows 11 is secure by design and by default, with multiple layers of defense enabled from day one. In line with the Windows Resiliency Initiative, we’ve made updates over the past year that make Windows harder to compromise and easier to recover when the unexpected happens. At Ignite, we’re introducing innovations that help protect against future threats, simplify recovery and modernize security tools—all while reducing complexity for IT.

Resilience when it matters most

Even the most secure organizations can face unexpected incidents. Windows is evolving to help stop incidents before they start, simplify management when they occur and enable rapid recovery. Our commitment to prevention is ongoing—every Windows update brings new security and resiliency improvements. We’re also taking big steps to help third party driver code run with less risk. As we have shared, the Windows Endpoint Security Platform (WESP) API (now in private preview) will give partners a safer way to build security tools outside kernel mode, reducing the risk of crashes and improving stability. But our work to help partners move code out of the kernel doesn’t end with security tools. We are working with the whole Windows driver partner ecosystem to move third party drivers out of the kernel, or to use Windows inbox drivers written by Microsoft. We are also hardening how kernel mode drivers run, to reduce reliability risks also for driver types like graphics, which cannot be moved to user mode for performance reasons. It is becoming easier to manage incidents with Windows 365 Reserve, now generally available. It helps enable employees to stay productive even when their primary device isn’t working, using secure, cost-effective, temporary Cloud PCs. If a device is lost, stolen or compromised, IT can quickly provision a Reserve Cloud PC with all the necessary apps and policies, keeping employees productive and businesses running through disruption. Intune and Azure Portal reporting of machines running the Windows Recovery Environment will also make incident management easier. This makes it easy to find impacted machines when an incident is preventing some machines from booting. To quickly recover when incidents occur, we’re reinventing the Windows recovery tools:

Quick Machine Recovery (QMR) was released for general availability earlier this year and is soon getting increased networking capabilities and Autopatch management for enterprise level control of QMR updates.
Intune recovery is remote management of the Windows Recovery Environment—a single, scalable management plane for recovery, enabling customers to execute custom recovery scripts and to trigger recovery actions. Azure Portal will have the same ability for Windows Servers hosted in Azure VMs.
Point-in-time restore: Roll back individual or groups of devices to a previous state, before an issue started occurring, without complex troubleshooting. (Preview coming soon.)
Cloud rebuild for Windows 11 (preview): Rebuild PCs experiencing erratic behavior, reducing downtime. You’ll be able to select the Windows release and language through the Intune portal. The PC will download the install media, rebuild itself and let the user take over with the out-of-box experience where Autopilot will ensure the right MDM management is configured. The user gets apps, PC settings and their files quickly through Intune, Windows Backup for Organizations, and OneDrive.

Staying current with updates is critical for security, compliance and productivity, but it’s also one of the biggest challenges for IT. That’s why we’re also introducing Autopatch update readiness (preview), a new approach to Windows update readiness that gives IT teams greater transparency, predictability and control. With Autopatch update readiness, organizations can proactively assess update readiness across their device fleet, identify potential issues before deployment and plan rollouts with confidence. This means fewer surprises, faster adoption of new features and a more resilient, up-to-date Windows environment for everyone.

Protection built in

Windows 11 is more secure by design and by default, with layers of security enabled by default to enhance your day one protection. We continue to strengthen security layers across the Windows stack to address the complex and evolving threat landscape: Breaking today’s encryption is intentionally hard—but advances in quantum computing and algorithms will eventually make it possible. To prepare, Windows now supports Post-Quantum Cryptographic (PQC) algorithms, designed to withstand quantum attacks. Announced at Build 2025, PQC algorithm support via the Windows Cryptography API is generally available today. Microsoft has worked closely with the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and global standards bodies to shape these algorithms, and we’ll continue expanding PQC support to higher-level protocols and Windows features. Having strong encryption on-device is critical for protecting your fleet’s data. BitLocker provides that today. Next-generation Windows devices will feature hardware-accelerated BitLocker—delivering full disk encryption with stronger hardware-based key protection, and faster BitLocker provisioning for new device onboarding. This capability will be generally available on new Windows devices next year. We’re making advanced forensics easier. Sysmon functionality (generally available in early 2026) will be part of Windows, making security events available via event log, simplifying operations and giving security teams deeper insights to detect and respond to threats quickly. Phishing and password attacks remains a top threat, and at Microsoft, we are also focused on getting to a passwordless world. Sign-in is now faster, smoother and more secure with Windows Hello's visual refresh and new passkey manager integration—including Microsoft Password Manager in Edge, 1Password, Bitwarden and others. Learn more about Windows security and resiliency announcements at: Preparing for what’s next: Windows security and resiliency innovations help mitigate risks, recover faster and prepare for the era of AI.

Empowering developers and IT pros

Security and flexibility set the stage, and developers and IT pros need tools to build and manage what's next. Windows is more than an operating system; it’s a strategic platform for innovation at scale. Developers get a rich ecosystem of frameworks and APIs to create intelligent, agentic applications that integrate seamlessly with cloud services. IT professionals benefit from enterprise-grade security, streamlined management and automation capabilities that reduce complexity and accelerate deployment. Together, these capabilities enable organizations to secure, adapt and future-ready experiences—key to becoming a Frontier Firm.

Advancing endpoint management with AI

We’re bringing AI into Intune to transform endpoint management. New Security Copilot agents in Intune like the Change Review Agent, Policy Configuration Agent and Device Offboarding Agent make complex tasks easier and security stronger by turning requirements into policies, assessing changes before they impact productivity and identifying devices for removal. Intune is raising the bar for IT control with three new capabilities—all designed to keep organizations secure, agile and ready for what’s next. Admin tasks centralize high-priority actions like approval requests and security tasks, deployments enable controlled, phased rollouts across a diverse estate, and maintenance windows let IT schedule updates at the right time to minimize disruption. Learn more about what's new in Intune here.

Building AI workflows locally

The future of AI is hybrid—combining cloud intelligence with on-device innovation. With cutting-edge silicon, a modernized stack and deep OS integration, Windows 11 is becoming the most open and capable platform for local AI. At its core, Microsoft Foundry on Windows unifies model selection, optimization and deployment across CPU, GPU and NPU—powering next-generation AI experiences. Microsoft Foundry on Windows gives developers the tools to build AI experiences on-device whether they choose to use AI APIs powered by the inbox models that ship with Windows or access a rich catalog of pre-optimized open-source models in Foundry Local. We are introducing two new Windows AI APIs today in preview, Stable Diffusion XL (SDXL) for high-quality image generation and video super resolution (VSR) to upscale low-resolution streams. App content search enters public preview as an API for developers to enable fast, intelligent in-app search experiences, making it easy to find relevant content within their Windows apps. At the foundation of Microsoft Foundry on Windows is Windows ML, now generally available. Windows ML provides a unified execution layer that streamlines the deployment of custom or proprietary models across a diverse Windows hardware ecosystem. With unified execution, hardware mapping and power-aware performance—enabled through deep collaboration with AMD, Intel, NVIDIA and Qualcomm—Windows ML ensures your models run efficiently on CPU, GPU or NPU. This means developers can deliver consistent, high-performance AI experiences without rewriting code for different hardware targets. Many leading app developers are already leveraging Microsoft Foundry on Windows to deliver innovative, secure and high-performance AI experiences locally on Windows. Windows ML is driving innovation across industries with partners like Roboflow leading the way. Roboflow, a Microsoft Start Up Pegasus Program participant, provides Visual AI tools used by millions of developers and over half the Fortune 100 for computer vision applications both in the cloud and on-device. With Windows ML, Roboflow deploys the RF-DETR model for advanced detection and segmentation on edge devices, enabling tasks like cargo container tracking and manufacturing quality assurance. Infosys, a global leader in digital services and consulting, has integrated Windows ML with Infosys Agentic Foundry, part of Infosys Topaz™. By leveraging custom models tailored with business data, Infosys is transforming a cloud-based invoice classification agentic AI system. This advanced agentic application is designed to help Infosys business operations teams effortlessly understand the status of invoices from data embedded in emails. Consequently, it can quickly determine the necessary actions to move these invoices through the workflow. This integration aims to significantly enhance and expedite the end-to-end process, while ensuring sensitive data remains secure without being transmitted to the cloud. The momentum among developers and partners adopting Microsoft Foundry on Windows continues to accelerate, with innovative solutions emerging across industries.

Looking ahead: The future of Windows

As we mark 40 years of Windows, this isn’t about looking back; it’s about building the future. The next chapter starts now. The announcements at Ignite 2025 are more than just features—they establish Windows as the canvas for AI and the execution fabric for people and the future of work. Whether you’re equipping frontline workers, knowledge employees or developers, Windows is the platform that brings it all together. From empowering teams with Windows 365, enabling secure hybrid work with Copilot+ PCs, and supporting the next generation of AI-powered apps and agents, Windows delivers a foundation that’s secure, manageable and ready for what’s next.

The time is now: Become a Frontier Firm

This is your moment. The organizations that will define the next decade are those that embrace the frontier, blending human ingenuity with intelligent systems, moving faster and delivering outcomes with confidence. Windows is the canvas for AI: enabling speed, resilience and IT control. Start with assistance in the flow. Delegate work to agents with control and oversight. Stand up the execution fabric with MCP and Windows 365. Your employees will move faster, your operations will become more resilient and you will do it with IT firmly in control, protecting your data and users at scale. Thank you for your trust and partnership. We can’t wait to see what you build next. Editor's note -- Nov. 18, 2025 -- Availability information in the Windows Resiliency Initiative section was updated. Endnotes: ⁱ New capabilities announced in this blog will roll out over time. Timing and availability of some experiences may vary by market. ⁱⁱNew Technology: The Projected Total Economic Impact™ of Microsoft Copilot+ PCs. Forrester Consulting study commissioned by Microsoft, July 2025. Projected benefits for a single composite organization that has US$1 billion annual revenue and 2,000 employees with 80% using Copilot+ PCs within three years. In comparison to a mixed environment of conventional Windows 11 and Windows 10 PCs. ⁱⁱⁱ New Technology: The Projected Total Economic Impact™ of Microsoft Copilot+ PCs. Forrester Consulting study commissioned by Microsoft, July 2025. Projected benefits for a single composite organization that has US$1 billion annual revenue and 2,000 employees with 80% using Copilot+ PCs within three years. In comparison to a mixed environment of conventional Windows 11 and Windows 10 PCs. ^iv Available only on Copilot+ PCs.

Microsoft Ignite 2024: Embracing the future of Windows at work

Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices — Tue, 19 Nov 2024 13:30:18 +0000

Windows has been at the heart of modern computing for nearly 40 years. It is the ubiquitous, open platform that powers computing experiences around the world and plays a significant role across multiple industries, such as education, government, military, hospitals and corporations, many of which provide mission critical services requiring a high level of security and resiliency. And this responsibility that Windows holds to keep businesses of every size running is one we take seriously. In close collaboration with our ecosystem partners, we ensure that Windows remains the optimal platform for organizations to perform at their best. As we enter this new era of work, we are focused on empowering our customers and organizations to modernize their computing experience with AI experiences and the cloud. As we come together at Microsoft Ignite 2024, we're excited to unveil the latest security, AI and cloud innovations coming to Windows for our commercial customers. We're pushing the boundaries to continue making Windows the most secure and performant platform for you and your organization. Announcements include:

The latest security innovation, requirements and updates on our commitment to building the most secure operating system on Earth
Availability of new cutting-edge AI tools for our developer community designed to drive new innovation on Copilot+ PCs and Windows 11
Updates on AI-powered Copilot+ PCs with Windows 11 and Microsoft 365 for enhanced productivity
The introduction of a new class of devices built to connect securely to Windows 365 in seconds, and expansion of Cloud PC solutions to more jobs such as Frontline workers, BYOD (bring your own device) employees, high-capacity computing and cloud-powered resiliency.

Throughout the next few days, we will outline our commitment to security, productivity and user experiences across Windows 11, Copilot+ PCs and Windows 365. Windows 11 is the most secure operating system on Earth, and the best computing platform for businesses of all sizes. We will explore how, together, Windows 11 and Microsoft 365 boost employee productivity, the value and performance Copilot+ PCs provide organizations, and we will share details on the right IT controls and security layers available to safeguard your organization. Additionally, we will highlight how Windows enables management of countless mission-critical workloads and how we are extending Windows across more platforms, to more jobs, with Windows 365 Cloud PCs.

Security and Resiliency: Our Top Priority

[caption id="attachment_179197" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Layers of protection chip to cloud[/caption] Protecting your organization’s data from emerging threats and ensuring system integrity is paramount. Windows 11 raises the bar for security and reliability, while maintaining the Windows open ecosystem where customers and partners innovate freely. We are committed to ensuring that Windows remains the most reliable and resilient open platform for our customers. As part of this commitment, we are introducing the Windows Resiliency Initiative, covering four areas of work:

Strengthen reliability based on learnings from the incident we saw in July
Enabling more apps and users to run without admin privileges
Stronger controls for what apps and drivers are allowed to run
Improved identity protection to prevent phishing attacks

Empowering IT administrators with great tools during critical times is a top priority. Our first step is born out of the learnings from the July incident with the announce of Quick Machine Recovery. This feature will enable IT administrators to execute targeted fixes from Windows Update on PCs, even when machines are unable to boot, without needing physical access to the PC. This remote recovery will unblock your employees from broad issues much faster than what has been possible in the past. This feature will be available to the Windows Insider Program community in early 2025. We are also evolving our partnership with endpoint security partners you rely on to keep your employees safe. For over 20 years, we have collaborated deeply with these partners as part of the Microsoft Virus Initiative (MVI). These partners have extensive integration with the Windows platform and play a significant role in safeguarding customers' digital portfolios. This summer we brought together a group of industry leaders and partners to discuss new ways we can work together to ensure that Windows 11 remains the most secure and resilient operating system. As an outcome of that summit, MVI partners will be required to take specific actions to improve security and reliability. In addition to increased testing and strengthened incident response processes, these partners must follow safe deployment practices for updates to your Windows endpoints. The practices include controlled gradual rollouts, and the monitoring and recovery procedures such as those recently shared by the US Cybersecurity and Secure Infrastructure Administration (CISA). The close Microsoft collaboration with MVI partners also includes working on new Windows platform capabilities to enable running anti-virus processing outside kernel mode. This will enable anti-virus products on Windows to provide a high level of security while minimizing reliability risks, as crashes outside kernel mode will only affect the anti-virus application, and not all of Windows. A private preview of these new Windows security platform capabilities will be made available to partners in July 2025. Our focus on Windows security goes well beyond the close collaboration with the MVI partners. Our Windows Secure by Design strategy is a comprehensive approach to ensuring that Windows 11 is the most secure operating system we have ever built, from the moment you power on your PC.

With Windows 11, we've achieved a remarkable 3x reported reduction in firmware attacks and 2.9x fewer instances of credential theft compared to Windows 10¹

We continue to raise the security bar with hardware security baseline requirements, security at every endpoint and related features enabled on by default.

Hardware Security Baseline: Our customers expect that every Windows 11 PC is safe and secure. Windows 11 leverages the latest hardware security features, such as TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot, to provide a robust defense against sophisticated attacks. Hardware security baselines now provide organizations with a consistent foundation and the confidence they expect in their operating system.
User-centric security enhancements: Guided by the Microsoft Secure Future Initiative, we are making big changes to deliver the highest level of Windows security. Smart App Control and App Control for Business policies provide peace of mind that only verified apps can run on your device, helping fend off attacks like malicious attachments or even social engineered malware. Windows Hello authentication has been extended to passkeys, so that you no longer have to choose between a simple sign-in and a safe one.
Administrator protection: We have introduced a new feature in preview where employees have standard user permissions by default, but can still make Windows system changes, including app installation, when necessary. With administrator protection enabled, if a system change requires administrator rights, the employee is prompted to authorize the change using Windows Hello. Upon approving the change, Windows creates a temporary isolated admin token that is destroyed once the process is completed. Administrator Protection helps to ensure that employees remain in control, not malware.

Learn more from David Weston about these new security enhancements.

Windows 365 and Windows 11 provided us with the capability, the operational resilience, the security that we needed to be able to provide a secure platform on which to build our products and services off.

--Sandra Lee, Group Chief Information Security Officer, London Stock Exchange Group

For detailed insights into these features and our Windows security priorities, please refer to our updated Windows Security book. This book provides a comprehensive view of our commitment to the Microsoft Secure Future Initiative and our aligned Windows security goals.

Empowering Developers with Cutting-Edge AI Tools

As we continue our journey into the AI era of computing, providing the right software tools and performant hardware to our developer community is critical to our success. This important community is at the forefront of this AI transformation, and with the introduction of Copilot+ PCs equipped with a powerful neural processing unit (NPU), we are seeing accelerated innovation around new AI experiences. Today, I’m excited to share new capabilities for developers which are designed to assist in the integration of AI in applications. At Build 2024, we introduced Windows Copilot Runtime (WCR), a reliable platform for developers to create innovative experiences more securely and efficiently, regardless of where they are on their AI development journey. Windows Copilot Runtime encompasses AI frameworks and tool chains that enable developers to integrate their own on-device models into Windows, utilizing robust client silicon such as GPUs and NPUs. Whether they are just getting started or are already building custom models, WCR includes a set of APIs that are powered by over 40 on-device models included with Windows. Phi 3.5 Silica, built from the Phi series of models, is optimized for the Snapdragon X series NPU in Copilot+ PCs, enabling text intelligence capabilities like text summarization, text completion and text prediction. Developers can access Phi 3.5 Silica API and Optical Character Recognition (OCR) API which recognizes and extracts text present within an image in Windows App SDK 1.7 Experimental 2 release in January. Today, I’m pleased to announce four new Imaging APIs in Windows Copilot Runtime which developers can access in Windows App SDK 1.7 Experimental 2 release in January.

Image super resolution: API increases fidelity of the image as well as upscaling the resolution of the image. This API can be used to enhance clarity of blurry images.
Image segmentation: API enables separating foreground and background of an image, as well as removing specific objects or regions within an image. Creativity apps like image editing or video editing can easily bring background removal capabilities in their apps using this API.
Object erase: This API enables erasing unwanted objects from the image and blends the erased area with the rest of the background.
Image description: API provides a text description of an image.

We are seeing exciting innovation with Windows Copilot Runtime and the NPU, coming from new third-party developers such as Adobe Premiere Pro, LiquidText, Dot Vista, Promeo by Cyberlink, McAfee’s Deepfake Detector, Capture One, Affinity Photo and more. In addition to the new AI-powered APIs and frameworks, it’s important to enhance developer productivity with tools they need to be efficient in their workflow. Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) offers a robust environment for AI development on Windows, allowing developers to simultaneously run Windows and Linux workloads. Starting today, we are introducing several critical enhancements to WSL and WinGet, empowering IT professionals to effectively manage their enterprise’s line-of-business applications.

Intune device compliance integration will provide IT professionals with an interface to control WSL distribution and version usage in their enterprise with controlled access.
Microsoft Entra ID integration with WSL allows enterprise developers to access protected enterprise resources from a WSL distribution. It provides an automatic connection for Linux processes to use the underlying Windows authentication.

We are excited to offer developers more choices for Linux distribution on WSL. With a new WSL distribution architecture, we are providing additional extensibility to IT professionals and enterprise developers to have more Linux distributions including Red Hat to choose from.

Harnessing the Power of AI: Windows 11 and Copilot+ PCs

AI is at the heart of our vision for the future of Windows 11, and its introduction into the productivity space is an exciting step forward. By leveraging the combined strengths of Windows 11 and Microsoft 365, we empower employees to achieve more with less effort through all-new AI experiences on Copilot+ PCs and Windows 11. With an integrated NPU capable of 40+ TOPS (trillion operations per second), Copilot+ PCs provide unique AI experiences and rich contextual insights across applications, with near real-time processing capabilities and support for the next generation of AI applications. When you add Microsoft 365 and the suite of innovative tools – including a large language model, graph and productivity features – employees can improve workflows, communicate effectively and collaborate more efficiently. With the introduction of Copilot+ PCs, Windows has been rearchitected, in collaboration with AMD, Intel and Qualcomm, and OEM partners, to optimize every layer of the stack for AI experiences. Copilot+ PCs are the fastest, most intelligent and the most secure PCs we've ever built. Together, Windows 11 on Copilot+ PCs with Microsoft 365 deliver experiences that enrich and empower employees and businesses in valuable new ways. Our innovation focuses on three key aspects of the employee experience: simplifying workflows, helping you find information faster and improving communication tools so everyone can be seen, heard and understood. Together, Windows and Microsoft 365 offer an experience with fewer clicks, less friction, richer context and greater capabilities for everyone. [caption id="attachment_179214" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Microsoft 365 Copilot[/caption]

Simplifying Your Workflow

An important aspect of productivity is the ability for employees to quickly switch between tasks, navigate applications and identify the right tools. This all takes time and effort which may distract from the task at hand. With Microsoft 365 Copilot on Windows 11, employees with a Copilot+ PC have access to a personal assistant for work designed to scale their impact, including aiding in idea generation, collaboration and task completion. We have only just begun unlocking new possibilities with Microsoft 365 Copilot on Copilot+ PCs. Microsoft 365 Copilot can harness the power of AI by utilizing the integrated NPU, allowing models to run locally. This reduces reliance on an internet connection for tasks such as AI writing assistance in applications like Outlook and Word. In the coming months, organizations will experience even greater benefits through new AI innovations, making generative writing capabilities accessible to more employees and enabling them to achieve more with less effort. Learn more from Jared Spataro about Microsoft 365 Copilot innovations in his blog.

Recall (Preview): Disabled by Default

Earlier this year, we introduced Recall for Copilot+ PCs, designed to make it easier to quickly find what you've seen before on your PC. We heard your feedback on needing a secure and controllable experience for using Recall in your organizations, and it will be. Recall will be disabled by default, and IT will enable this feature through new policies before it can be made available to employees for opting in and will ship with meaningful security enhancements, including additional layers of data encryption and Windows Hello protection, making it one of the most secure experiences we have ever built. Our goal is to ensure that your employee and organization data is protected from the beginning, and we look forward to hearing your feedback on this new experience. [caption id="attachment_179215" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Recall IT controls[/caption]

AI Assistance at Your Fingertips

Another Copilot+ PC feature recently announced is Click to Do (preview), an all-new powerful productivity paradigm that puts AI at your fingertips to assist with many tasks across applications such as being able to summarize any content on your screen, even if it’s in a Teams call. Click to Do (preview) in Recall is releasing first to our Windows Insider community on Copilot+ PCs before rolling out more broadly to our customers. It is designed to connect you to quick AI actions based on the context of what's on your screen, making it faster and easier to get things done, all done in secure and private workflows. [caption id="attachment_179216" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Click to Do (preview)[/caption]

Finding What You’re Looking For Faster

A seamless workflow relies on quickly finding what you need. Employees often struggle to locate files or information on their PC and across applications. Copilot+ PCs, with powerful NPUs, will reduce this frustration using Improved Windows Search, which uses federated semantic search to interpret user intent even when it doesn't match the exact file name. This feature will be released first to our Windows Insider community on Copilot+ PCs, starting early next year, before rolling out more broadly to our customers. Our Microsoft 365 Copilot customers can search both local and cloud files, boosting efficiency. These capabilities will expand to the Windows search box and Settings in the future. [caption id="attachment_179212" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Improved Windows Search[/caption]

Effective Communication and Team Collaboration

Achieving optimal productivity involves more than just completing tasks; it also includes enabling employees to communicate effectively while engaging in work they are passionate about. When using Teams on Copilot+ PCs, employees will experience optimized performance and reduced battery consumption. Teams Super Resolution enhances the quality of incoming video, improving visibility of colleagues even with weak internet connections. Live Captions with live translation support from over 40 languages into English, makes it easier than ever to connect with colleagues near and far². And, for the days you need to look and sound your best, Windows Studio Effects provide valuable visual and audio filters, providing optimal appearance and sound quality during a video call. These innovative experiences are powered by Windows Copilot Runtime. Studio Effects, Live captions with live translations and Image super resolution are available as ready to use APIs in Windows Copilot Runtime. Organizations can leverage these APIs to bring similar experiences to life in your applications, such as WhatsApp who has upgraded their user experience adding Windows Studio Effects controls directly into the UI. Learn more. [caption id="attachment_179220" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Teams Super Resolution[/caption]

Work Securely and with Enhanced Flexibility in the Cloud

With Windows 365, we extend Windows 11, Microsoft 365 and AI capabilities across any platform. Give employees the limitless computing power of Windows in the cloud, with access to the same Windows experience no matter which device they are on. With Windows 365 you can ensure business continuity across your entire team from remote and in-person employees, to consultants, contractors and temporary workers.

A More Secure Way to Access Your Work – Windows 365 Link

As organizations shift more workloads to the cloud for better security and flexibility, Microsoft is expanding its Cloud PC solution with a new class of devices built to connect securely to Windows 365 in seconds. Today we are excited to announce Windows 365 Link – the simple, secure and purpose-built device for Windows 365. Windows 365 Link is now in preview and will become generally available for purchase in select markets at $349 starting April 2025. It enables desk-based users to work securely on a familiar Windows desktop in the Microsoft Cloud with responsive, high-fidelity experiences. Compact, fanless and lightweight, Windows 365 Link can be conveniently shipped directly to users. It boots in seconds, wakes instantly from sleep, and offers local processing for video conferencing solutions such as Microsoft Teams meetings and Webex by Cisco, maximizing employee productivity. Windows 365 Link supports dual 4K monitors, four USB ports, an audio port, an Ethernet Port, Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3, making it compatible with both wired and wireless peripherals. It is simple to manage using Microsoft Intune alongside other PCs with a small Windows-based OS footprint with minimal applicable configuration policies. Windows 365 Link is designed with security in mind. The device does not store local data or apps and employees do not have admin privileges, ensuring corporate data stays protected within the Microsoft Cloud. Security baseline policies are enabled by default and security features cannot be disabled. Login is simple and secure with password-less authentication using Microsoft Entra ID and the Microsoft Authenticator app or USB security keys. Windows is dedicated to delivering choice and flexibility for our customers. Critical to that effort is our OEM and silicon ecosystem. Just like we did with 2:1s, we’re starting with first party devices and doing the work to get the product experience right. As we continue to expand the Cloud PC category, we look forward to expanding offerings as well, scaling with our OEM partners in 2025. [caption id="attachment_179205" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Windows 365 Link[/caption]

Support for Frontline Workers and BYOD

Today at Ignite, we are also announcing Windows 365 Frontline provisioned in “shared mode,” which will provide a new way to access Windows 365 Cloud PCs and is now available in preview. This new mode is designed for users who need brief access to complete ad-hoc tasks quickly and securely from a non-personalized Windows desktop environment and their user data is deleted upon log off. Additionally, Windows App now supports Mobile application management (MAM) for iOS and Android. Now in preview, MAM enhances device redirection and strengthens security on unmanaged or externally managed devices. It allows organizations to define device security criteria and customize access, supporting BYOD scenarios.

Now with Windows 365, we have one integrated solution that leads to security, that leads to cost efficiency, that leads to much better employee productivity and employee experience.

--Vineet Gupta, Head of Employee Experience, HP

Extending Windows 11 to Mixed Reality

Windows in mixed reality brings the full capabilities of Windows 11 to mixed reality headsets, starting with Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S. Access to your local Windows PC or Windows 365 Cloud PC from a Quest headset is seamless and it takes only seconds to connect to a private, high-quality, large, multiple-monitor workstation. This will be available in public preview by the end of the year.

Endpoint Modernization

We continue to make progress on Windows endpoint modernization, designed to enhance security, productivity and management efficiency for organizations moving to Windows 11. As the end of support for Windows 10 approaches, there has never been a better time to upgrade to Windows 11, a more secure and resilient computing environment that empowers organizations to protect their data, optimize productivity and remain competitive in the rapidly evolving digital landscape. And with features like Windows Backup for Organizations with Entra ID Accounts coming in public preview this Spring, the transition to Windows 11 is easier than ever before. Learn more about the tools and resources available to organizations. And, as more of our customers make the move to the cloud, we continue to support them with Cloud PCs, Cloud Services and Cloud Management tools. Today at Ignite we announced several new features to help IT management ensure they can minimize the impact to the already stretched resources within their teams. Windows Update for Business deployment service has now been woven into Windows Autopatch, providing a more cohesive and streamlined update experience. With this change, customers can use Windows Autopatch to simplify keeping their Windows devices up to date. This automation helps to ensure the seamless deployment of updates for the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Edge. The unified dashboard in the Microsoft Intune admin center allows for easy management of update policies, groups, status and reports, enabling IT professionals to maintain the level of control needed for their organization. This approach aims to reduce complexity, enhance compliance and security, and improve resource allocation. This dashboard ensures timely updates, minimizes disruptions and frees IT resources for strategic initiatives, without requiring additional licensing. Hotpatch for Windows is an innovative feature in preview, aimed at boosting both productivity and security. With Hotpatch, updates are downloaded in the background and become effective immediately upon installation, eliminating the need for a device restart. This enables customers to work without interruptions, while keeping systems protected with the latest security updates. When combined with Windows Autopatch, Hotpatch streamlines the update process and significantly shortens the time needed for applying updates. Organizations utilizing Windows Autopatch have reported up to a 95% reduction in the time required to deploy feature updates. Hotpatch will also be available on Windows 365 Cloud PCs.

Building a Future with Windows: Innovation and Security at the Forefront

As we look to the future, our mission remains clear: to create a seamless and secure experience for every customer, organization and developer. With the new capabilities in Windows 11, Copilot+ PCs and Windows 365, combined with our relentless focus on innovation, we are building a future where we will unlock the full potential of what Windows can offer. What you've seen today is just the beginning. We're committed to continuous innovation and improvement. Whether it's through enhanced security, better performance or transformative AI experiences, we're building a future where Windows empowers every user and organization to achieve more. ¹ Windows 11 Survey Report. Techaisle, September 2024. Commissioned by Microsoft. Windows 11 results are in comparison with Windows 10 devices. ² On some devices, Copilot+ PC experiences require free updates available starting later this year and continuing into 2025. Timing varies by device and region. See aka.ms/copilotpluspcs

New experiences coming to Copilot+ PCs and Windows 11

Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 13:22:06 +0000

At a time when many are talking about their vision for AI, today we are pleased to announce continued AI innovations coming to Copilot+ PCs and Windows 11. https://youtu.be/12HqdkcsYWs We are introducing new experiences for the Windows 11 PC that not only streamline daily tasks but also empower users with new capabilities to tackle complex challenges. These new features will make getting things done on your PC faster, simpler and more personalized. In this era of AI, we continue to push the boundaries of what is possible and navigate in an era of unprecedented technological transformation. Today, it’s clear that innovation isn’t just about creating new products; it’s about enabling us to reimagine how we solve everyday problems. Now, you can quickly and easily find what you’re looking for using your own words, and applications will reveal themselves where and when you need them, keeping you in your flow. Our goal with AI enabled innovation at the Windows 11 endpoint is focused on empowering our customers and achieving better output in everything you do, all without complicating the process, making everyday tasks easier and more efficient. But we aren’t just talking about AI innovation or showing what may come in the future. In May, we announced the Copilot+ PC, a new class of PCs that introduced AI-enabled experiences to Windows customers. Starting this holiday, our Copilot+ PC and Windows 11 customers will have access to even more new features designed to make your PC smarter, more useful and more secure.

Transforming the PC experience with new and useful features

The market response to Copilot+ PCs – engineered from the inside out for AI as the fastest, most intelligent and most secure Windows PCs ever built – has been extraordinary. With industry accolades deeming these PCs a “must buy” and many retailers seeing increased customer demand, we are excited to build on our momentum by introducing even more AI enabled “superpowers” made possible by our integrated 40+ TOPS (trillion operations per second) NPU. These new Copilot+ PC experiences will arrive on Windows 11 PCs from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung and Microsoft Surface, showcasing silicon from Qualcomm, Intel and AMD. And, starting at just $699, these Copilot+ PCs redefine what you can expect from your next computer. New features will become available to our Windows Insider community, with a phased rollout to select devices and markets beginning in November¹. Recall (Preview): Recall is an entirely new way to instantly find something you’ve previously seen on your PC. Following the announcement in May, we listened to our community emphasizing the need for additional default security layers. We have taken the time to make Recall even more secure by default, ensuring our customers feel confident that their data is safe and secure, right from the start. Customers will now have the choice to opt-in to saving snapshots and if they do opt-in, they will use Windows Hello to confirm presence and securely unlock the Recall experience. And with the sensitive information filter, Recall will apply filters over sensitive information when highly confidential data, like credit card details or personal identification numbers, needs to stay just that – confidential. Learn more about the security and privacy integrated into Recall. Starting in October, Windows Insiders will begin to see Recall on Snapdragon powered Copilot+ PCs. Customers who purchase an Intel- or AMD- powered Copilot+ PC will see Recall initially in our Windows Insider program starting in November. Timing details on the broad availability of Recall will be shared at a later date. Click to Do (Preview): Click to Do is designed to help simplify your workflow by magically placing an interactive overlay on top of your PC screen, enabling suggested quick actions to appear over images or text. At your request, Click to Do seamlessly connects you to tools and actions to accomplish tasks, like suggesting help with Visual Search with Bing, background blur or erasing objects in Photos, removing backgrounds with Paint, and more. It also assists with text-related actions such as rewrite, summarize or explain text in line, opening in a text editor, sending an email (with a recognized email address), web searches, and opening websites (with a recognized URL). Click to Do is context-aware, and accessible from any Copilot+ PC screen – simply press the Windows key and click your mouse to find Click to Do in Snipping Tool or Print Screen to get started. With a clear focus on enhancing productivity, customers will see additional rich actions added in the coming months. Improved Windows Search: Finding the right files, including documents, settings or photos, on Copilot+ PCs just got easier. Using your own words, like “BBQ party” you can now describe things to find what you’re looking for on Windows. You no longer need to remember file names, settings locations or even worry about spelling – just type what’s in your mind to find it on a Copilot+ PC. You can even find photos in OneDrive by describing the content in the same way. And, thanks to the power of the 40+ TOPS NPU onboard Copilot+ PCs, it works even when you’re not connected to the internet. Improved search will be available first with File Explorer and expanding to Windows Search and Settings in the coming months. Super resolution in Photos: Reimagine and enhance your lower-resolution and older photos into high-quality images without worrying they’ll look blurry or pixelated. You no longer have to deal with a distorted, pixelated photo after increasing its size. Using powerful on-device AI, super resolution in Photos will transform your old or lower-quality images into reimagined memories. Simply use the slider to increase the resolution by up to 8X, and precisely control and adjust the output. And this work won’t take all night. With the power of the 40+ TOPS NPU, super resolution in photos can upscale a photo up to 4K within seconds, for free. Generative fill and erase in Paint: Pre-release build shown; subject to change Paint is your creative companion, making it effortless to bring your visions to life. Using AI tools announced in May, creators are using their own words to describe their vision in a prompt, or a few swipes of the brush, to create incredible images all for free and without the need for a subscription. Now, with the addition of generative fill and generative erase, you can edit and alter images with greater precision and creative freedom. Using an adjustable brush, you can remove unwanted or distracting elements in your image or add new ones, exactly where you want them. We’ve also improved the underlying diffusion-based model to deliver better results faster, and with built-in moderation, it’s a creative experience you can trust. Even more new Copilot+ PC Arm enabled applications from top developers: We continue to expand the long list of native apps and emulated experiences available for Arm-based Copilot+ PCs. With new apps landing every day, we’re excited to see developers leaning into the power of the industry leading NPU, offering unique experiences and performance across categories such as Productivity, Entertainment, VPN and Security. Many of the most popular applications are already available for Windows on Arm. You can enjoy brands such as Chrome, Zoom, Brave, Opera, Slack, Spotify, Adobe (InDesign, Illustrator and Premiere), Davinci Resolve, Algoriddim djayPro, Libre Office, 1Password and Todoist today, with new native apps on the horizon including Vegas Pro, Fantastical, Sketchbook Pro, Arc Browser, Google Drive and more. We also see strong momentum in the VPN and printer space. Popular apps like ExpressVPN, Private Internet Access, Surfshark and Windscribe are available now, with NordVPN coming soon. And, with over 90% of printers purchased in the last seven years working seamlessly, our Copilot+ PC customers have access to the apps and performance they expect on their Windows PC.

Windows 11 2024 update begins rolling out

Starting today, the Windows 11, version 24H2 update begins to roll out to Windows 11 customers. This update includes new features like Energy Saver designed to extend battery life and reduce energy use, even when your device is plugged in. We are thrilled to announce improved Hearing Aid support with Bluetooth LE Audio, with new capabilities to control audio presets, ambient sounds and experience enhancements. We are also introducing Wi-Fi 7 compatibility, offering unprecedented connectivity speed, reliability and efficiency. Windows 11, version 24H2 also offers HDR background support. We have also made significant improvements to the taskbar and system tray, File Explorer and Settings to make it even easier and more intuitive to do the things you want on your Windows PC. Learn more about how these features will roll out to customers. For our commercial customers, you can learn more about the related IT Tools for this update.

Looking ahead

At Microsoft, we’re proud to be at the forefront of this journey, driving momentum with innovation at the Windows 11 endpoint on Copilot+ PCs. These advancements not only enhance the experience but also empower our customers to bring their ideas to life with secure, cutting-edge Windows 11 solutions. As the way we interact with technology continues to evolve, we are committed to ensuring that our innovations are not only cutting-edge but also secure and privacy focused. We understand that in today's digital age, protecting our users' data is paramount. That's why we have integrated advanced security safeguards and privacy measures into our products, ensuring that AI is both useful and secure in everyday life. Our Copilot+ PCs are equipped with intelligent features that enhance productivity while maintaining the highest levels of security. Whether you're working on sensitive documents, communicating with colleagues or managing personal information, you can trust that your data is safe. Join us as we continue to innovate and push the boundaries of what’s possible on Windows this holiday with Copilot+ PCs. ¹Please visit aka.ms/copilotpluspcs for more detail on the rollout as it becomes available.

Copilot+ PCs expand availability with new AMD and Intel silicon

Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 17:00:07 +0000

In May, we announced a new category of devices: Copilot+ PCs. These PCs are the fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever built, featuring a new system architecture designed to deliver best-in-class performance, battery life, and breakthrough AI experiences to help people be more productive, creative and communicate more effectively. Today, marks the next step in our journey as the Copilot+ PC portfolio expands with the introduction of new silicon technology -- AMD Ryzen AI 300 series and Intel Core Ultra 200V series. This growth underscores our commitment to innovation, providing customers with leading AI experiences, fast performance, long battery life, seamless connectivity, enhanced security and personalized productivity. The first wave of innovation on Copilot+ PCs was powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus, on PCs designed by our ecosystem partners – Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung and Surface. The Snapdragon X Elite outperforms MacBook Air M3 platforms by up to 58% delivering the outstanding performance our customers expect [1]. We have seen incredible energy and momentum for Copilot+ PCs, with customers telling us that the performance and battery life exceeds their expectations. Copilot+ PCs also feature industry-leading Wi-Fi 7 and chip-to-cloud security with Microsoft Pluton. Developers are building incredible experiences that leverage the neural processing unit (NPU) technology, with more to come. We’re inspired by customer stories of how they are engaging with new AI experiences like Live Captions with translation, empowering them to communicate across languages with friends and family, or Cocreator in Paint inspiring people’s creativity to help bring their ideas to life. As we use our PCs today, whether for work, school or play, we are all multitasking — with double digit browsers tabs that we are fearful of closing, multiple applications open, and running complex tasks, all at the same time. The ability to balance multiple short burst and long running tasks is critical for a fast and responsive experience, all of which Copilot+ PCs deliver. These PCs are incredibly responsive, keeping you productive even on your busiest days and don’t require you to make the typical compromise of battery life for performance. And, with over 90% of time spent in native experiences [2] including popular apps like Chrome, Zoom, Brave, Photoshop, Opera, Slack, Spotify, Private Internet Access, Surfshark, Windscribe, OpenVPN and many others, customers experience the optimal performance they expect on Copilot+ PCs. Together with our ecosystem partners, we are all in on Copilot+ PCs. AMD and Intel have delivered next generation enhancements to their Ryzen AI 300 and Intel Core Ultra 200v processors. Through our deep co-engineering partnerships and updates in Windows 11, Copilot+ PCs powered by these next-gen AMD and Intel silicon will fully realize these hardware improvements, resulting in meaningful advancements across performance, battery life, security and connectivity. For AI, we will continue to innovate, bringing new features, devices and platforms that deliver new experiences to empower our customers. This focus and pace of innovation mean that select features may be previewed first with our Windows Insider Community, before becoming broadly available to on Copilot+ PCs. Eligible AMD- and Intel-powered devices will begin to see new AI experiences starting in November through free Windows updates [3]. Features included in the free updates:

Live Captions with translation
Windows Studio Effects (Background effects: standard blur, portrait blur, eye contact, and automatic framing)
Cocreator in Paint
Photos: Restyle image and Image Creator

Recall, as previously shared, will begin rolling out first to our Windows Insider Community starting in October. The new AI PC era is driving rapid innovation for our customers, with productivity, creativity and security at the center of it all. We have an unprecedented number of Copilot+ PC designs coming to market, and we can't wait to see the exciting announcements from our partners at IFA this week. Stay tuned for updates and join us as we continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible with Copilot+ PCs. [1]Tested May 2024 using Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core benchmark comparing Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon X Elite 12 core and Snapdragon X Plus 10 core configurations to MacBook Air 15” with M3 8 core CPU / 10 Core GPU configuration. Performance will vary significantly between device configuration and usage. [2] Based on snapshot of aggregated app usage data as of August 2024 for Copilot+ PCs in US, UK, CA, FR, AU, DE, JP [3] Timing and availability may vary by device and region. See aka.ms/copilotpluspcs.

Update on the Recall preview feature for Copilot+ PCs

Pavan Davuluri, President, Windows + Devices — Fri, 07 Jun 2024 16:00:10 +0000

Update Oct. 31, 2024: We are committed to delivering a secure and trusted experience with Recall. We recently shared updates to the security and privacy architecture for Recall in a Windows Blog post. To ensure we deliver on these important updates, we’re taking additional time to refine the experience before previewing it with Windows Insiders. Originally planned for October, Recall will now be available for preview with Windows Insiders on Copilot+ PCs by December. Update Aug. 21, 2024: With a commitment to delivering a trustworthy and secure Recall (preview) experience on Copilot+ PCs for customers, we’re sharing an update that Recall will be available to Windows Insiders starting in October. As previously shared on June 13, we have adjusted our release approach to leverage the valuable expertise of our Windows Insider community prior to making Recall available for all Copilot+ PCs. Security continues to be our top priority and when Recall is available for Windows Insiders in October we will publish a blog with more details. Update: June 13, 2024: Today, we are communicating an additional update on the Recall (preview) feature for Copilot+ PCs. Recall will now shift from a preview experience broadly available for Copilot+ PCs on June 18, 2024, to a preview available first in the Windows Insider Program (WIP) in the coming weeks. Following receiving feedback on Recall from our Windows Insider Community, as we typically do, we plan to make Recall (preview) available for all Copilot+ PCs coming soon. We are adjusting the release model for Recall to leverage the expertise of the Windows Insider community to ensure the experience meets our high standards for quality and security. This decision is rooted in our commitment to providing a trusted, secure and robust experience for all customers and to seek additional feedback prior to making the feature available to all Copilot+ PC users. Additionally, as we shared in our May 3 blog, security is our top priority at Microsoft, in line with our Secure Future Initiative (SFI). This is reflected in additional security protections we are providing for Recall content, including “just in time” decryption protected by Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS), so Recall snapshots will only be decrypted and accessible when the user authenticates. The development of Copilot+ PCs, Recall and Windows will continue to be guided by SFI. When Recall (preview) becomes available in the Windows Insider Program, we will publish a blog post with details on how to get the preview. To try Recall (preview) WIP customers will need a Copilot+ PC due to our hardware requirements. We look forward to hearing Windows Insider feedback. Today, we are sharing an update on the Recall (preview) feature for Copilot+ PCs, including more information on the set-up experience, privacy controls and additional details on our approach to security. On May 20, we introduced Copilot+ PCs, our fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever. Copilot+ PCs have been reimagined from the inside out to deliver better performance and all new AI experiences to help you be more productive, creative and communicate more effectively. One of the new experiences exclusive to Copilot+ PCs is Recall, a new way to instantly find something you’ve previously seen on your PC. To create an explorable visual timeline, Recall periodically takes a snapshot of what appears on your screen. These images are encrypted, stored and analyzed locally, using on-device AI capabilities to understand their context. When logged into your Copilot+ PC, you can easily retrace your steps visually using Recall to find things from apps, websites, images and documents that you've seen, operating like your own virtual and completely private “photographic memory.” You are always in control of what's saved. You can disable saving snapshots, pause temporarily, filter applications and delete your snapshots at any time. As AI becomes more prevalent, we are rearchitecting Windows to give customers and developers more choice to leverage both the cloud and the power of local processing on the device made possible by the neural processing unit (NPU). This distributed computing model offers choice for both privacy and security. All of this work will continue to be guided by our Secure Future Initiative (SFI). Our team is driven by a relentless desire to empower people through the transformative potential of AI and we see great utility in Recall and the problem it can solve. We also know for people to get the full value out of experiences like Recall, they have to trust it. That’s why we are launching Recall in preview on Copilot+ PCs – to give customers a choice to engage with the feature early, or not, and to give us an opportunity to learn from the types of real world scenarios customers and the Windows community finds most useful.

Listening to and acting on customer feedback

Even before making Recall available to customers, we have heard a clear signal that we can make it easier for people to choose to enable Recall on their Copilot+ PC and improve privacy and security safeguards. With that in mind we are announcing updates that will go into effect before Recall (preview) ships to customers on June 18.

First, we are updating the set-up experience of Copilot+ PCs to give people a clearer choice to opt-in to saving snapshots using Recall. If you don’t proactively choose to turn it on, it will be off by default.

Second, Windows Hello enrollment is required to enable Recall. In addition, proof of presence is also required to view your timeline and search in Recall.

Third, we are adding additional layers of data protection including “just in time” decryption protected by Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS) so Recall snapshots will only be decrypted and accessible when the user authenticates. In addition, we encrypted the search index database.

Secure by design and secure by default

In line with Microsoft’s SFI principles, before the preview release of Recall to customers, we are taking steps to increase data protection. Copilot+ PCs will launch with “just in time” decryption protected by Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS), so Recall snapshots will only be decrypted and accessible when the user authenticates. This gives an additional layer of protection to Recall data in addition to other default enabled Window Security features like SmartScreen and Defender which use advanced AI techniques to help prevent malware from accessing data like Recall. We also know the best way to secure information on a PC is to secure the whole PC itself. We want to reinforce what has previously been shared from David Weston, vice president of Enterprise and OS Security, about how Copilot+ PCs have been designed to be secure by default and share additional details about our security approach. Some notable examples of security enhancements include:

All Copilot+ PCs will be Secured-core PCs, bringing advanced security to both commercial and consumer devices. In addition to the layers of protection in Windows 11, Secured-core PCs provide advanced firmware safeguards and dynamic root-of-trust measurement to help protect from chip to cloud.
Microsoft Pluton security processor will be enabled by default on all Copilot+ PCs. Pluton is a chip-to-cloud security technology – designed by Microsoft and built by silicon partners – with Zero Trust principles at the core. This helps protect credentials, identities, personal data and encryption keys, making them significantly harder to remove from the device, even if a user is tricked into installing malware or an attacker has physical possession of the PC.
All Copilot+ PCs will ship with Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security (ESS). This provides more secure biometric sign ins and eliminates the need for a password.

Protecting your privacy on Copilot+ PCs

In our early internal testing, we have seen different people use Recall in the way that works best for them. Some love the way it makes remembering what they've seen across the web so much easier to find than reviewing their browser history. Others like the way it allows them to better review an online course or find a PowerPoint. And people are taking advantage of the controls to exclude apps they don't want captured in snapshots, from communication apps or Teams calls, or to delete some or all their snapshots. This is why we built Recall with fine-grained controls to allow each person to customize the experience to their comfort level, ensuring your information is protected and that you are in control of when, what and how it is captured.

Snapshots are stored locally. Copilot+ PCs have powerful AI that works on your device itself. No internet or cloud connections are used to store and process snapshots. Recall’s AI processing happens exclusively on your device, and your snapshots are kept safely on your local device only. Your snapshots are yours and they are not used to train the AI on Copilot+ PCs.
Snapshots are not shared. Recall does not send your snapshots to Microsoft. Snapshots are not shared with any other companies or applications. Recall doesn’t share snapshots with other users who are signed into the same device, and per-user encryption ensures even administrators cannot view other users’ snapshots.
You will know when Recall is saving snapshots. You'll see Recall pinned to the taskbar when you reach your desktop. You'll have a Recall snapshot icon on the system tray letting you know when Windows is saving snapshots.
Digital rights managed or InPrivate browsing snapshots are not saved. Recall does not save snapshots of digital rights managed content or InPrivate browsing in supported web browsers.
You can pause, filter and delete what’s saved at any time. You're always in control of what's saved as a snapshot. You can disable saving snapshots, pause them temporarily, filter applications and websites from being in snapshots, and delete your snapshots at any time.
Enterprise and customer choice. For customers using managed work devices, your IT administrator is provided the control to disable the ability to save snapshots. However, your IT administrator cannot enable saving snapshots on your behalf. The choice to enable saving snapshots is solely yours.

Empowering people with experiences they can trust

We are on a journey to build products and experiences that live up to our company mission to empower people and organizations to achieve more, and are driven by the critical importance of maintaining our customers’ privacy, security and trust. As we always do, we will continue to listen to and learn from our customers, including consumers, developers and enterprises, to evolve our experiences in ways that are meaningful to them. We are excited for the upcoming launch of Copilot+ PCs on June 18 and for the innovative new features and benefits this entirely new category of PCs will bring. We will continue to build these new capabilities and experiences for our customers by prioritizing privacy, safety and security first. We remain grateful for the vibrant community of customers who continue to share their feedback with us.