Microsoft gives Copilot more control over Windows and files

Microsoft showed an upgrade to Copilot at its Windows and Surface event, giving the AI system access to local files on a PC and the ability to take actions across Windows.

The features are part of what Microsoft calls “Hybrid Intelligence,” an approach that combines local and cloud AI models. In a video demo, Jacob Andreou, Microsoft’s EVP of Copilot, asked the company’s Autopilot tool to help file taxes after receiving an email from his accountant. Autopilot searched folders for documents, renamed the files, zipped them into a folder and drafted an email to the accountant with the zip file attached.

Andreou said features powered by Hybrid Intelligence will come to Copilot over the “next couple months.” Microsoft also showed a new Windows search experience that can perform quick actions from the search bar, including turning on dark mode, adjusting microphone volume with an in-line slider and sending a text.

The new search experience will be available starting this fall on Windows 11 PCs, according to Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft’s Windows and Surface boss.