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Microsoft starts removing Copilot buttons from Windows 11 apps

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Why This Matters

Microsoft is removing redundant Copilot buttons from Windows 11 apps to streamline user experience, while maintaining the underlying AI features. This move reflects a broader effort to declutter the OS interface and focus on essential functionalities, potentially influencing how AI integrations are presented in future updates. For consumers, this signifies a more focused and less intrusive AI experience within Windows 11.

Key Takeaways

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Microsoft is starting to remove “unnecessary” Copilot buttons from its Windows 11 apps. In the latest version of the Notepad app for Windows Insiders, Microsoft has removed the Copilot button in favor of a “writing tools” menu. The Copilot button in the Snipping Tool app also no longer appears when you select an area to capture.

The change is part of “reducing unnecessary Copilot entry points, starting with apps like Snipping Tool, Photos, Widgets and Notepad,” that Microsoft promised to complete as part of its broader plan to fix Windows 11. While Copilot buttons are being removed, it looks like the underlying AI features are here to stay, though.

The Copilot button in Notepad is going away, but the AI features will remain. Screenshots by Tom Warren / The Verge

The Copilot button has been removed from Notepad, but the writing tools replacement still uses AI-powered features and looks like the identical menu of options that existed before. I still think these features are largely unnecessary in what’s supposed to be a lightweight text app, but removing the superfluous Copilot branding is a good first step.

I’m now waiting to see if Microsoft decides to remove the Copilot button requirement from laptop keyboards, or whether it will go further and remove the other unnecessary Copilot buttons that it has added into various parts of Windows 11 in recent months.