At today’s Windows and Surface event, Microsoft unveiled an upgrade to Copilot that gives the assistant access to local files on a PC and the ability to take actions across the operating system as part of a new “Hybrid Intelligence” approach that mixes local and cloud AI models.
Copilot and Hybrid Intelligence
Jacob Andreou, Microsoft’s EVP of Copilot, demonstrated how Hybrid Intelligence works with a staged Autopilot demo for filing taxes. Andreou told the AI agent he had received an email from his accountant and asked Autopilot to collect what she needed. Autopilot used Hybrid Intelligence to search across different folders for the documents, rename the files, compress them into a zip folder, and draft an email to send the zip file to the accountant. Features powered by Hybrid Intelligence will be coming to Copilot over the ‘next couple months,’ Andreou said.
Updated Windows search experience
Microsoft also showed a refreshed Windows search experience that enables quick actions directly from the search bar, such as turning on dark mode, increasing microphone volume with an in-line slider, or sending a text. The company said the new search experience will be available starting this fall on Windows 11 PCs, according to Windows and Surface boss Pavan Davuluri.
