Last month, Microsoft announced that it planned to remove “unnecessary” Copilot features in Windows 11. The news was a bit shocking to say the least: Microsoft has been one of the biggest proponents of generative AI, pushing the technology into as many corners of its apps and OS as possible—despite negative feedback from users. Now, it seems the company is paying attention, and is actually sticking to its word.
As spotted by The Verge’s Tom Warren, Microsoft has already started removing some “unnecessary” Copilot buttons from certain Windows apps. Warren notes that the latest Windows Insider version of the Notepad app is missing the Copilot button. In its place, Microsoft has added a “writing tools” menu. The Snipping Tool also has a similar situation: When you select an area to take a snapshot of, you won’t find the Copilot button anymore.
It’s a small start, but at least the company is starting the removal process. In his announcement last month, Pavan Davuluri (Microsoft’s President of Windows & Devices) revealed that the company would remove Copilot from both Notepad and the Snipping Tool, but also Photos and Widgets. If the trend holds, expect to see these apps lose their Copilot buttons next.
The keyword here really is “buttons” though. As Warren highlights for The Verge, Microsoft seems to be largely retaining the AI features themselves. “Writing tools” in Notepad still has Microsoft’s AI writing tools, in case users still want to access those options. But by removing the large Copilot option, users who want nothing to do with AI in apps like Notepad can easily avoid them. Really, it’s evidence that the “in your face” approach Microsoft has taken to AI integration has really backfired. It doesn’t help the company’s case that, up until last week, Microsoft’s official terms of service said Copilot was “for entertainment purposes only.”
It’s simple enough to remove Copilot buttons from software; it’s another thing entirely to deal with the Copilot button affixed to new “Copilot+ PCs.” Microsoft had manufacturers add this button as part of its dedication to this new technology, but now that it’s pulling back a bit, it leaves these PCs in an odd place. It always seemed like a strange choice to put a Copilot key on a laptop when it wasn’t clear how many users really want to use Copilot features in the first place. At least you can remap it to do something more useful if you don’t care for Microsoft’s AI.
