Desktop and mobile operating systems are getting more and more AI features. Microsoft is bringing new features in the recently released Windows 11 2025 Update, but Google and Apple are also introducing more AI into their products and devices.
For Microsoft, Copilot+ PCs are just the beginning of a long journey that is making Windows more intelligent. A recent article on Microsoft's website highlights the current status quo of AI in Windows and at the future of Windows.
Neural processing units (NPU) power this new functionality. The chips are a main requirement for Copilot+ PCs, enabling at least 40 trillion operations per second for AI operations.
Windows devices without these chips are locked out of most AI features that Microsoft introduced in the past three or so years. The 2025 feature update alone introduced several new features, including AI actions in File Explorer, Click to Do functionality, and Agent in settings. The latter accepts natural language prompts, such as "how can I share Internet with other devices", to point out solutions and provide users with information.
That is certainly useful for users who are less experienced when it comes to configuring Windows, provided that the AI agent gets it right and does not suggest something that is totally unrelated to the query.
Microsoft: the future of Windows is AI
More interesting than the current status quo is the plan that Microsoft has for Windows going forward. Microsoft believes that AI agents could change how users interact with computers, which it says has not really changed much in the past 60 years. "Intelligent software assistants" will be able to understand user requests "and with their permission perform tasks on their behalf" in the future on Windows machines.
For that, NPUs are essential. They allow to run AI tasks locally, which should please privacy-conscious users who look at Internet-powered AI features with suspicion. Still, the majority of Windows PCs does not have a NPU yet. This is the case for most Windows 10 devices, an operating system that Microsoft will end support for in less than two weeks.
But many Windows 11 PCs also lack an NPU. When Microsoft released Windows 11, it did not roll out its Copilot+ PC program. The first generation of Windows 11 PCs therefore does not support most AI features that Microsoft is introducing in Windows.
This will change in the coming years, as the focus will be on Copilot+ compatible PCs, because more and more features of the operating system will require AI or at least offer features that work only with a NPU.
Now You: do you have a PC with a NPU already? Do you use AI features regularly? What is your prediction for Windows going forward?
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