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Meta, Microsoft roar higher on strong earnings as AI spending booms

Shares of Meta soared 12% and Microsoft popped 5% on Thursday, after the companies reported better-than-expected earnings that beat on top and bottom lines. Microsoft topped the $4 trillion market cap benchmark with the move, joining Nvidia in the club. Both Meta and Microsoft have been investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure in recent years, and the companies said they expect to continue to shell out billions in capital expenditures. Meta said capital expenditures will ra

Microsoft and Amazon are hurting cloud competition, UK regulator finds

Attendees walk through an exposition hall at AWS re:Invent, a conference hosted by Amazon Web Services, in Las Vegas on Dec. 3, 2024. LONDON — Britain's competition regulator on Thursday said that Microsoft and Amazon are hurting competition in the cloud computing industry and called for a probe into their market dominance under the country's strict new tech rules. The Competition and Markets Authority said that market concentration and barriers to entry in the cloud services market have enabl

Hey Microsoft, is it ‘Xbox PC’ or ‘Xbox on PC’?

is a senior editor and author of Notepad , who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years. Microsoft first started using the “Xbox PC” term in a blog post announcing the Gears of Wars remaster in early May. It was a new branding effort designed to signal that games are available on PC through its own Xbox PC app and store. The Xbox PC branding didn’t last long though, as Microsoft has now started using “Xbox on PC” instead. Which one is it, Microsoft? The Xbox PC br

Microsoft suddenly bans LibreOffice developer's email account, blocks appeal

Recap: The developers of LibreOffice, a free and open-source alternative to Microsoft Office, have repeatedly criticized Microsoft's proprietary software policies over the past few months. Although a recent incident involving Microsoft and a LibreOffice developer has no known connection to the rivalry, it could spark further criticism of the Windows provider. When LibreOffice developer Mike Kaganski attempted to send an email to the productivity suite's developer mailing list using a Hotmail ad

The 10 apps I can't live or work without - on Windows, Mac, and mobile

berkozel/Getty Images Every five years or so, I make an inventory of the apps I use most frequently. It's always fascinating to see how the list has changed over time, and it usually says something about the computing landscape. When I did that exercise this year, I was astonished at the changes. Half of the apps I used five years ago are no longer on my list at all in 2025. They've been replaced, in most cases, by apps that are tightly linked with web-based services and cloud storage and can

Lyon Is Replacing Windows and Microsoft Office with Linux and OnlyOffice

Jumping Rocks/Contributor/Getty Is it something in the water? First, it was Denmark bidding Microsoft adieu. Then it was the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Now it's Lyon, France's third-largest city and a leading economic hub, sweeping Microsoft Windows and Office suite away to replace them with Linux, OnlyOffice, NextCloud, and PostgreSQL. Also: Ready to ditch Windows? 'End of 10' makes converting your PC to Linux easier than ever So, why is Lyon making this move? Well, it's not due to

Microsoft stock pops 8% on earnings beat as Azure annual revenue tops $75 billion

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at an event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the company at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington, on April 4, 2025. Microsoft shares jumped 8% in extended trading on Wednesday after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter. Here's how the company performed in comparison with LSEG consensus: Earnings per share: $3.65 vs. $3.37 expected $3.65 vs. $3.37 expected Revenue: $76.44 billion vs. $73.8

Microsoft tops $4 trillion in market cap after hours, joining Nvidia in exclusive club

Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella speaks in front of the OpenAI logo at the Microsoft Build conference in Seattle, Washington, on May 19, 2025. The $4 trillion club has a second member, at least based on after-hours trading. Following a better-than-expected earnings report on Wednesday, Microsoft shares jumped 8%, lifting the software giant's market cap to about $4.1 trillion. Should the rally stick on Thursday, Microsoft would join chipmaker Nvidia , which hit $4 trillion for the first

Microsoft's stock pops 7% on earnings beat as Azure annual revenue tops $75 billion

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at an event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the company at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington, on , April 4, 2025. Microsoft shares jumped 7% in extended trading on Wednesday after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter. Here's how the company performed in comparison with LSEG consensus: Earnings per share: $3.65 vs. $3.37 expected $3.65 vs. $3.37 expected Revenue: $76.44 billion vs. $73

Microsoft reports strong cloud earnings, with Windows and Xbox up too

is a senior editor and author of Notepad , who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years. Microsoft just posted the fourth and final quarter of its 2025 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $76.4 billion in revenue and a net income of $27.2 billion during Q4. Revenue is up 18 percent, and net income has increased by 24 percent. Like clockwork, cloud services are the strong point of Microsoft’s revenue this quarter. Azure revenue grew 39 percent year-ov

How to get another free year of updates for your Windows 10 PC

If your PC meets those conditions, you'll enroll in the ESU program by opening the Settings app and clicking Windows Update. You should see a status message telling you that Windows 10 updates end in October of 2025, with an "enroll now" link you can click to enroll in the Extended Security Updates program. Windows 10 users whose PCs meet the conditions for the ESU program will start seeing this status message about the end of support, along with an enrollment link. Credit: Andrew Cunningham I

Microsoft is getting ready for GPT-5 with a new Copilot smart mode

is a senior editor and author of Notepad , who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years. I reported last week that OpenAI is planning to launch GPT-5 in early August, as part of an effort to simplify and combine its large language models. Just a day after my report, references to GPT-5 were spotted inside Microsoft’s Copilot web app, hinting at a new smart mode. Sources familiar with Microsoft’s AI plans tell me that the company is currently testing this new smart

Microsoft Will Delete Your Passwords This Friday. What to Do Now

We're only days away from the Microsoft Authenticator app no longer managing passwords. As of this Friday, you won't be able to save or manage passwords, use two-factor authentication or auto-fill. And it won't be your go-to password manager anymore, either. Earlier this summer, Microsoft announced it was moving from passwords to passkeys. So instead of creating a password with a mix of letters, symbols and numbers, you'll use PINs, fingerprint scans, facial recognition or a pattern on your de

Microsoft set to report earnings after the close

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at an event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the company at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington, on , April 4, 2025. Microsoft is scheduled to report fiscal fourth-quarter results after markets close on Wednesday. Here's what analysts are expecting, according to LSEG consensus: Earnings per share: $3.37 $3.37 Revenue: $73.81 billion The estimates imply around 14% year-over-year revenue growth for Microsoft, the world's No. 2 company by marke

.NET 10 Preview 6 brings JIT improvements, one-shot tool execution

A newly arrived sixth preview of Microsoft’s planned .NET 10 application development platform touts improved JIT code generation for struct arguments, one-shot tool execution, and other enhancements in the .NET libraries, runtime, and SDK, as well as the ASP.NET Core, Blazor, and .NET MAUI frameworks. .NET 10 Preview 6 was announced July 15. The production release is expected in November. Developers can download Preview 6 at dotnet.microsoft.com. With improved code generation for struct argume

A decade of Windows 10: Chaos, Cortana, and conspiracy theories that never panned out

Andrew Burton/Getty Images Windows 10 turned 10 years old this week. It's a bittersweet birthday, as it marks the beginning of a steady march toward a forced retirement that will kick off with the official end of support on October 14, 2025. For a computer operating system, time is measured in something roughly equivalent to dog years, and by that measure, 10 years is an eternity. Windows 10, you are old. Also: Can't upgrade your Windows 10 PC? You have 5 options before EOS To mark the occas

Happy 10th birthday, Windows 10! Hoo boy, it's been a journey

Andrew Burton/Getty Images Windows 10 turned 10 years old this week. It's a bittersweet birthday, as it marks the beginning of a steady march toward a forced retirement that will begin with the official end of support on October 14, 2025. For a computer operating system, time is measured in something roughly equivalent to dog years, and by that measure, 10 years is an eternity. Windows 10, you are old. Also: Can't upgrade your Windows 10 PC? You have 5 options before EOS To mark the occasion

Opera takes its browser beef with Microsoft to Brazil in antitrust complaint

Opera is filing an antitrust complaint against Microsoft in Brazil, alleging it creates an unfair environment for alternate browsers to compete with Edge. The Norway-based company claims Microsoft's deals to make Edge the exclusive pre-installed browser on Windows machines creates an unfair environment for alternate browsers to compete. Opera also argued that Microsoft uses design tactics and dark patterns to further discourage people from downloading and using rival products. It is asking Brazi

Microsoft bans LibreOffice developer's account without warning, rejects appeal

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works Recently, we reported on LibreOffice, accusing Microsoft of intentionally using complex file formats as a tactic to lock in users to Microsoft Office, hindering open source alternatives like LibreOffice. Now, Microsoft has banned LibreOffice developer, Mike Kaganski, from using its services, citing an "activity that violates [its] Services Agreement". According to Mike, this happened last Mon

Opera is filing a complaint over Microsoft’s tricks that push you to use Edge

is a senior editor and author of Notepad , who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years. Microsoft has used a variety of tricks to convince people to keep using the defaults of Bing and Microsoft Edge in Windows over the years, including modifying Chrome download sites and using malware-like popups. Now, Opera is fed up with what it calls Microsoft’s “manipulative design tactics” and is filing a competition complaint in Brazil today, alleging that Microsoft is usin

Microsoft is revamping Windows 11’s Task Manager so its numbers make more sense

Microsoft devotes most of its time and energy these days to promoting new AI- and Copilot-related features for Windows 11, but the company's Windows Insider builds are still full of small tweaks and changes aimed at improving longstanding Windows features for people who just want to use their PC the way they always have. New updates that began rolling out to testers in the Windows Insider program yesterday include a couple of small but meaningful changes for Windows power users. First, Microsof

Microsoft Releases List of Jobs Most and Least Likely to Be Replaced by AI

Researchers at Microsoft tried to determine which precise jobs are most and least likely to be replaced by generative AI — and the results are bad news for anyone currently enjoying the perks of a cushy desk job. As detailed in a yet-to-be-peer-reviewed paper, the Microsoft team analyzed a "dataset of 200k anonymized and privacy-scrubbed conversations between users and Microsoft Bing Copilot," and found that the occupations most likely to be made obsolete by the tech involve "providing informat

Microsoft Edge now an 'AI-powered browser' with Copilot Mode

Microsoft has introduced Copilot Mode, an experimental feature designed to transform Microsoft Edge into a web browser powered by artificial intelligence (AI). As the company explained on Monday, this new mode transforms Edge's interface, with new tabs showing a single input box that combines chat, search, and web navigation functions. Once Copilot Mode is enabled, the AI assistant will be able to analyze all open browser tabs with the user's permission, comparing information and assisting wit

Xbox adds age checks in UK to comply with Online Safety Act

Recap: Digital platforms across the United Kingdom are adjusting their operations after the country's new Online Safety Act came into force, with Microsoft's Xbox gaming service among the latest to announce compliance measures. The legislation, aimed at making digital spaces safer for children and young people, has set off a wave of new regulations that require internet companies to verify users' ages if their platforms could potentially host explicit or harmful content. Microsoft confirmed thi

Microsoft in talks to maintain access to OpenAI’s tech beyond AGI milestone

Microsoft is reportedly in advanced talks with OpenAI for a new agreement that would give it ongoing access to the startup’s technology even if OpenAI achieves what it defines as AGI, or advanced general intelligence. If the deal goes through, it would clear a key hurdle in OpenAI’s transition toward becoming a fully commercial enterprise. The companies have been negotiating regularly, and they could come to an agreement in a few weeks, Bloomberg reports, citing three anonymous sources. The rep

Microsoft adds Copilot Mode to Edge browser, brings AI chat and voice control

What just happened? Microsoft is taking a bigger swing at everyday AI integration with the launch of Copilot Mode in its Edge browser. Now available on Windows and Mac, the update marks a significant step in Microsoft's push to embed AI directly into the browsing experience, making tasks like research, comparison shopping, and online navigation faster (to be seen), and voice-enabled. Copilot Mode blends chat, search, and navigation in a single input field. Rather than relying on users to manage

I use Edge as my default browser - but its new AI mode is unreliable and annoying

Microsoft / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Microsoft's on a relentless quest to embed its Copilot AI into every software product it owns. That campaign takes another big step forward with the addition of some new generative AI features in the company's Edge browser. The latest release beefs up the capabilities of Copilot Mode, the chat-based search interface for Edge, on Windows PCs and Macs. You can use natural voice commands to navigate pages, and the chatbot can see all the open tabs in the c

Microsoft Is Giving Windows 10 Users Free Security Updates for a Year, but There's a Catch

As Microsoft gets ready to sunset Windows 10, security support is scheduled to end in October. You can get a one-year extended security update for $30. But if you want to stick with Windows 10 for another year, you might be better off with Microsoft's free option -- you'll just need to use cloud backup and connect it with your OneDrive account. The ability to get free updates on Windows 10 is a pretty big deal because it is still the most widely used Windows OS, accounting for just over 53% of

Microsoft plans to bring Xbox age verification to countries outside of the UK

Microsoft is implementing an age verification system on Xbox accounts to comply with the UK's Online Safety Act, and in a new blog post announcing the move, the company suggests it'll come to other countries, too. Players in the UK who indicate on their account that they're 18 years or older will now "begin seeing notifications encouraging them to verify their age," Microsoft says. The process is optional for now, and players will be able to enjoy playing Xbox games until "early 2026," when ver

Microsoft Edge is now an AI browser with launch of ‘Copilot Mode’

With demand for AI-powered browsers on the rise, Microsoft on Monday launched a new feature in its Edge browser called Copilot Mode, which allows users to browse the web while being assisted by AI. The idea is that the AI can become a helper that can understand what the user is researching, predict what they want to do, and then take action on their behalf. How well it works in practice remains to be seen, but Microsoft notes that Copilot Mode is still considered an experimental feature. It’s a