Microsoft has announced a major innovation for Windows computers with the addition of a key dedicated to AI, enabling the Copilot chatbot to be invoked. This is the first change to keyboards since the 1990s, proving once again the massive disruptive impact of this new technology. Find out what this button is for and how to use it!
Artificial intelligence is unquestionably the most revolutionary technology for computing for many years, and probably since the advent of the Internet.
This observation is confirmed by the addition of a button entirely dedicated to AI on the Windows keyboard. This is the first major change since the famous Windows key, added some 30 years ago.
The Copilot key: the first change to the Windows keyboard since 1994
After incorporating ChatGPT into its Bing search engine and Edge browser, and following the introduction of AI assistant Copilot, Microsoft has decided to go one step further with this new button.
Starting this January 2024, from many new computers running Windows 11 will feature this “Copilot” key. What does it do? Launch artificial intelligence directly.
What’s it for?
All you have to do is press this button to invoke the AI chatbot and ask for its help. It will be able to summarize a long text, search for products or simply make changes to PC settings.
Press this key to even ask Copilot to create a song for you. ! This feature, worthy of a sci-fi movie, is made possible by a partnership with the company Suno, which specializes in AI-assisted music creation.
How to use this new AI button
This Copilot button will be located near the space bar, in place of the right CTRL button on most PCs. In some cases, it will replace the button used to open the menu.
On a device where the Copilot assistant is not available or enabled, pressing the button will launch the Windows Search functionality instead of calling the AI.
If your PC doesn’t have this physical key, you can invoke the Copilot AI assistant right now by pressing Windows + C. To find out all you need to know about Copilot, read our full report at this address!
Which computers will be equipped with this button?
For the time being, it is not known which PC manufacturers have accepted to install this key on their keyboards. Only Dell has announced that its new range of XPS laptops laptops.
However, Microsoft promises that several companies will be unveiling new computers incorporating this new feature. at CES in Las Vegasfrom January 9 to 12.
Of course, the new PCs in the Surface range directly manufactured by Microsoft will feature this innovation. Although artificial intelligence has so far been deployed more on mobile devices, the firm has promised that 2024 would be ” the year of the AI PC “.
On can therefore expect many innovations related to this technology, capable of totally revolutionize the way we use our computers for so many years…
2024: the year of the AI PC?
According to Yusuf Mehdi, the firm’s vice-president, the year ahead ” promises to be nothing short of extraordinary “. We don’t know what other surprises the American giant has in store for us…
For the time being, however, Microsoft’s competitors have yet to announce similar initiatives. And yet, Apple was the first to add a custom touch to its Mac keyboards with the famous “Command” key in the 1980s.
Likewise, Google incorporates a web search button to the keyboards of its Chromebook laptops. It was also the first to experiment with an AI-dedicated button to launch the voice assistant on its Pixelbook laptops, which are no longer in production.
What do you think? Is this AI key really going to be useful on Windows? Or is it just a marketing ploy to promote Copilot AI?