Microsoft has announced a new update for Windows 11 that integrates several new features utilizing artificial intelligence. According to the company’s official blog post, these updates are intended to enhance productivity, creative tasks, and system accessibility, with a focus on new Copilot+ PCs, or hope someone stumbles upon an actual use case Microsoft can finally package to customers. The new functionalities are being integrated into the operating system and its core applications.
Contextual Actions with “Click to Do”
The “Click to Do” feature allows users to perform contextual actions on selected text or images directly within their current window. By highlighting content, a menu appears with relevant options, such as summarizing text, creating a bulleted list, drafting an email, or scheduling a Microsoft Teams meeting.
This update expands the feature with two new reading-oriented actions:
- Practice in Reading Coach: A tool designed to help users improve their reading fluency.
- Read with Immersive Reader: An option that presents text in a simplified, distraction-free view.
Copilot Vision for On-Screen Assistance
Now available in the U.S., Copilot Vision on Windows enables the AI assistant to process information from the user’s screen to provide real-time assistance. This function can be used for tasks such as troubleshooting software settings or gathering information about content displayed in an image.
AI Enhancements in Creative Applications
The update introduces AI-driven tools to several native Windows applications:
- Photos: A new “Relight” feature provides users with controls to adjust lighting effects in their pictures.
- Paint: The application now includes a “Sticker generator” to create custom stickers from text descriptions and an “object select” tool for isolating and editing specific elements within an image.
- Snipping Tool: The tool receives a “perfect screenshot” feature, which uses AI to precisely capture selected content, potentially reducing the need for manual cropping. A “color picker” has also been added to identify and capture specific colors from the screen.
Updates to System Functionality and Accessibility
The release also includes several improvements to core Windows functions:
- Improved Windows Search: The search function now supports queries phrased in natural language.
- Enhanced Accessibility: The Narrator screen reader has been updated to provide more detailed descriptions of images, charts, and graphs for visually impaired users.
- Gaming: A new feature called “Edge Game Assist” offers gamers access to in-game tips, guides, and related applications like Discord and Twitch from within the browser.
- System Resilience: A “Quick machine recovery” feature has been implemented to automatically address certain system issues during unexpected restarts, alongside a more streamlined restart process.
This latest release continues Microsoft’s strategy of integrating AI capabilities directly into the Windows 11 operating system, providing users with a new set of tools for various tasks.
These new features are being delivered to Windows 11 users through the standard Windows Update service. To check for and install the update, follow these steps:
- Open the Settings app (you can use the keyboard shortcut
Windows Key + I). - Navigate to the Windows Update section.
- Click the “Check for updates” button.
If the update is available for your device, it will begin downloading and will install either automatically or upon your approval. For quicker access, you can also turn on the toggle switch for “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available.”
It is important to note that Microsoft often releases updates in phases, so it may not appear for everyone simultaneously. If you do not see the update today, it will likely become available for your device in the coming days or weeks. Furthermore, while the general update is for all compatible Windows 11 devices, some of the more advanced AI features may require specific hardware, such as that found in new Copilot+ PCs.
