Last week, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella hosted an intimate, invite-only event for leaders from several of its key endeavor customers. Instead of a flashy media event, Nadella outlined the forthcoming of Copilot immediately to the customers Microsoft really cares about, pitching its latest rethink of the AI aide as the “OS for work.”
Microsoft is adding coding and delegate capabilities immediately into Copilot, as fine as bringing the complete power of Office into Copilot for the archetypal time. Nadella is betting that AI volition alter the way group activity in the identical way that Microsoft Office did in the ’80s and ’90s.
“How did a multinational business do a forecast in 1981? You had interoffice memos and faxes and all of these artifacts that afterward fair disappeared and you abruptly had an Excel spreadsheet in an email,” stated Nadella. “We are the architects of a new frontier of work, using these new tools and capabilities.”
Microsoft has spent the former few months fusing together its person and endeavor Copilot apps into a sole unified person interface, alongside a goal to create Copilot as influential as Office formerly was. The outcome is a big departure from the Copilot person design that Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman launched two years ago. That scheme was heavily influenced by the activity Inflection AI had done alongside the Pi individual AI assistant, following Microsoft hired many of the Inflection AI squad fair months prior.
The new Copilot app now looks a lot additional akin the business one, alongside distinct tabs for chat, coding, and the new Autopilot AI agent. There are several small nods to the person UI that was accessible before, but general it looks akin the category of endeavor app you’d affiliate alongside Microsoft.
“There’s a really crucial logic why we decided to do this,” stated Copilot chief Jacob Andreou at Microsoft’s customer-only event final week. “The bar for endeavor application is higher than it has always been before. The expectations we have of the tools we clasp at activity are set by the things we use following hours and at the weekends at home. What this method is that person UX and attention needs to create its way into the workplace.”
Andreou joined Microsoft AI final year, focused on merchandise and growth. In March, Nadella appointed him as the sole chief of Copilot throughout the two business and consumer, reporting immediately to the Microsoft CEO. He’s now liable for the design, engineering, and growth of Copilot.
Sources acquainted alongside Microsoft’s Copilot plans inform me that redesigning Copilot complete the final six months hasn’t been easy. There have been tensions between the squad under Andreou, and those operating for Charles Lamanna on the Copilot, Agents, and Platform (CAP) team. Lamanna’s squad has been construction Microsoft Scout, an always-on individual delegate built on top of OpenClaw. Microsoft announced Scout at its Build developer gathering in June, alongside fair a desktop preview app. Less than six months later, I comprehend that the app has been put into care mode, alongside Microsoft focusing on the haze version, which has been rebranded to Autopilot.
I’m told the rebrand was driven in part by lawful concerns about the Scout name, as Yahoo uses “Yahoo Scout” branding for its own AI-powered features. Sources inform me Microsoft had equal considered using Mico, the Clippy-like character from the person Copilot, to substitute Scout. Nadella preferred Autopilot instead, allowing Microsoft to current its AI delegate in a additional enterprise-friendly way, alternatively of a bouncing blob.
Some of Microsoft’s alert about making Autopilot too adorable comes at a period whenever rogue AI agents are hacking into businesses. Nadella addressed these concerns final week, laying out Microsoft’s scheme goals for Copilot. “[It’s] concerning organizations having authority of their firms in an age of AI, anywhere AI by definition is a learning machine,” stated Nadella. “It can’t be concerning leaking the center of what your resolute is about.”
Andreou additionally admitted that agents “have been nearly unattainable to bring into the enterprise,” because of them needing the autonomy and elasticity that businesses normally balk at. “It is their superpower, and it’s the identical item that makes them entirely terrifying to an IT admin.”
Microsoft thinks it has solved the AI delegate issue for businesses alongside its “OS for work,” but it additionally seems to be leaving the entrance open for competitors akin Meta and OpenAI to build the “OS for life.” In a earth anywhere 1.2 milliard group use ChatGPT all week, Microsoft is playing to its traditional business-focused strengths alternatively of trying to vie alongside consumer-friendly Muse and Dots agents.
Andreou isn’t giving up on Copilot for consumers fair yet, however, and he seems to desire to hone in on those that desire the power of endeavor apps at home. “Microsoft consumers are a small bit special. There’s nearly 90 myriad folks that pay for Microsoft 365 out of their own pocket,” stated Andreou. “These are group who value the use of things akin PowerPoint and Excel so much in their individual lives that they really go onward and pay for it themselves.”
With Office baked into Copilot, you’ll shortly be capable to create and edit inner Microsoft’s AI aide alternatively of having to toggle to Office apps akin Word and PowerPoint. There’s a complete ribbon interface, and it basically looks akin the web type of Office immediately inner Copilot. I think this is Microsoft’s archetypal genuine acknowledgement that we’re heading to a forthcoming anywhere AI can create a lot of the documents that group used to depend on Office for. Microsoft’s move to bring Office into Copilot has the possible to basically reshape the forthcoming of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Nadella is now positioning Copilot as the platform for this new AI era of work, alternatively of fair cramming AI features into Office itself. Microsoft has tried to market endeavor on Copilot in Office multiple times in latest years, but the reply to a $30 per month, per person Copilot subscription was lukewarm two years ago.
Nadella motionless thinks Microsoft volition nail AI at work, and in rotate convince businesses to pay for it. “The way we think of Copilot is not fair the merchandise itself changing, it’s the contours of activity inner the endeavor changing,” stated Nadella. [It’s] the dancing between the form of the merchandise and the organizational structural alter to work.”
- Microsoft refreshes its smaller Surface Pro and Laptop alongside Qualcomm’s X2 Plus. Microsoft is keeping the identical scheme and hardware features of its existing Surface Pro 12-inch and Surface Laptop 13-inch devices, but it’s upgrading them alongside Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon X2 Plus chips. That should average improved achievement and power division life, but gratitude to RAMageddon, it additionally method higher cost points. Microsoft is additionally bringing rear the dreary color choice for the two of these smaller Surface devices, alongside platinum argent or violet colors accessible too. Both of these refreshed Surface devices volition be accessible on October 13th, alongside the 12-inch Surface Pro starting at $1,149.99 and the 13-inch Surface Laptop starting at $1,199.99.
- Microsoft’s new Surface Mouse has haptic feedback and a customizable act button. Microsoft’s smaller refreshed Surface devices power not be all that exciting, but the business additionally announced a refresh to the Surface Mouse for the archetypal period in 10 years. The new example includes haptic feedback assistance and has a customizable act clasp for the archetypal time. It’s nice to see additional mice alongside haptic feedback, which plant through subtle vibrations during things akin clicks, drags, and alignment in Windows 11.
- Microsoft Ink Canvas is an AI-powered digital sketchpad. Microsoft is launching a new digital sketchpad app for Windows next month. Microsoft Ink Canvas volition be accessible archetypal on the new Surface Pro 12-inch, and another supported devices on October 13th. It supports sketching alongside pen or touch, and includes AI depiction generation and summaries. It’s basically an AI-powered type of the assorted digital whiteboard apps Microsoft has created complete the years.
- Microsoft puts Brad Smith in accusation of communications. Microsoft is moving its communications collection out of promotion and into its Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA) organization. The astonishment change volition see Microsoft vice place and chairman Brad Smith oversee communications, during the business searches for a replacement for Frank Shaw, chief communications officer, who is departing afterward this year. This move seems to stance Microsoft PR to be additional akin how AI startups operate, allowing researchers to guide demos and compose blogs. Microsoft is motionless chasing Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI to rotate into a top AI example lab, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says he’s “excited concerning the chance to assistance our engineers, sellers, partners, and others closest to our products and customers rotate into an equal bigger part of how we inform our story.”
- Bill Gates says control AI, since it’s mighty adequate to logic a milliard deaths. While Microsoft is pushing onward alongside its new Copilot app, Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates wants AI regulations. In an discussion alongside NBC News, Gates says that AI is “certainly mighty adequate to run events that, you know, logic a milliard deaths.” He wants politicians and law implementation to “get into the conversation concerning what safeguards and monitoring appearance like.”
- Microsoft is slaying off the “Copilot Plus PC” brand. When Microsoft announced its Surface Laptop Ultra in May, there was no Copilot Plus PC branding to be found. Even although the new 12-inch Microsoft Surface Pro and 13-inch Surface Laptop technically encounter the scheme requirements for a Copilot Plus PC, Microsoft is not calling them by that name anymore. There doesn’t appear to be a straightforward replacement following two and a fractional years of Copilot Plus PCs, but Microsoft does have a Windows event next week, so perchance we’ll comprehend concerning a new brand for its AI-focused PCs.
- Human workers are reviewing prompts and images sent to Microsoft Copilot. Human contractors are reviewing Copilot users’ prompts and uploaded images, according to a new report from 404 Media. The publish reports that several contractors operating on Copilot have described seeing disturbing requests and possibly forbidden images. “Faces are continually uncensored, and many of the prompts are intimate in nature and dubiously consensual,” says one individual who reportedly plant on the Copilot prompts.
- Xbox’s Mythic Achievements are here, and they’re fair akin PlayStation Platinum trophies. Microsoft has officially announced its new Xbox Mythic Achievements, and they’re already accessible for Xbox Insiders to test. Mythic Achievements activity a lot akin Sony’s PlayStation Platinum trophies and are unlocked formerly you’ve earned all first accomplishment for a game. Mythic Achievements leaked as part of an Xbox PC app final week, complete alongside a distinctive unlock sound. Mythic Achievements are now in evaluation fair weeks following Xbox CEO Asha Sharma revealed that Xbox would be getting a platinum trophy equal afterward this year.
- Windows 11’s 2026 update is now available. Microsoft is rolling out Windows 11 type 26H2, aka the Windows 11 2026 Update. It’s what Microsoft calls a “small enablement package,” allowing Windows 11 users to download and instal the latest publish quickly alongside a sole restart. So what’s new? Well, because of the way Microsoft releases new Windows features these days, many of the identical features that have been rolling out to type 25H2 volition be part of 26H2.
- Gears of War: E-Day is a awesome equivalent launching at a awful time. My coworker Andrew Webster has been playing Gears of War: E-Day, and he’s impressed. “E-Day is reminiscent of a James Cameron film: Absolutely all component is in assistance to creating a thrilling sci-fi spectacle,” says Webster. “It’s as near to a playable Aliens as you’re border to find.”
- Xbox’s Gears of War pizza cutter sold out in hours. Speaking of Gears of War, Xbox has teamed up alongside Prince St. Pizza to initiate a pizza cutter to grade the initiate of E-Day. The $60 cutter is built in the form of the Prototype Lancer arm from the game, and additionally includes an in-game pizza emblem. Unfortunately for Gears of War fans, the cutter sold out inside hours of going on sale. Still, Prince St. Pizza volition additionally be marketing an “Emergence Pie” pizza alongside a spicy vodka sauce, so if you’re fortunate they power equal carve it up for you alongside the Lancer cutter.
- “Xbox is not for sale” says Microsoft’s gaming chief. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has denied reports that Microsoft is considering marketing off its Xbox business. “Xbox is not for sale,” says Sharma in an interview alongside The New York Times. “We volition do any it takes to set the business up for success, and we volition appearance at the correct partnerships, the correct functioning example and everything needed to accomplish that.” The Information reported in June that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood had been considering spinning out Xbox entirely, and afterward reported before this duration that the two execs have “more lately supported Sharma’s plans to overhaul the unit.” The overhaul includes moving Halo, Sea of Thieves, and Age of Empires under Activision, as fine as marketing off smaller Xbox studios. The latest changes appearance geared toward making Xbox a entirely owned subsidiary akin Microsoft has done alongside LinkedIn.
Note: I’m traveling to San Francisco next week for the Windows and Surface event on October 7th, so Notepad might not attain on time.
I’m continually eager to comprehend from readers, so delight autumn a comment here, or you can attain me at [email protected] if you desire to conversation item else. If you’ve heard concerning any of Microsoft’s concealed projects, you can attain me via email at [email protected] or conversation to me confidentially on the Signal messaging app, anywhere I’m tomwarren.01. I’m additionally tomwarren on Telegram, if you’d favor to conversation there.
Thanks for subscribing to Notepad.
Follow topics and authors from this narrative to see additional akin this in your personalized homepage nourish and to obtain email updates.
