Microsoft may have finally fixed Windows search by turning it into a chatbot

Less than a year after it promised to remove unnecessary Copilot integration from Windows 11, Microsoft announced today that it plans to turn part of the operating system's Task Bar into a sort of chatbot. Starting this fall, the Search Menu will allow you to carry out thousands of different actions across Windows just by typing short commands into its interface. During the company's fall Surface event, Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft's executive vice president of Windows and Devices, demoed how the new Search experience can quickly turn on and off settings like dark mode and do not disturb. He also demoed how the redesigned menu allows users to converse with the new Copilot app, without launching the software separately. 

Davuluri said the redesigned interface is also faster, and more efficient, promising it will make finding apps, settings and files easier. The inference is also more contextual. For instance, if you type "increase mic volume," you will see a volume slider appear above your command prompt. If you have your phone paired with Windows, you can also use the Task Bar to send text messages without pulling out the device.      

"To make AI a part of everyday life, we need to bring it to places people use the most — into the flow of human ambition," Davuluri told the audience at the company's San Francisco event. "We're moving into a future where everyone can simply express what they want, and their Windows PC, with their permission, can take action on their behalf."   

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