"Windows Intelligence": Microsoft may drop Copilot in major AI rebranding

Copying Apple for marketing's sake, as usual

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A hot potato: Microsoft is apparently prepping a significant rebranding effort for the AI-based features introduced in recent Windows versions. The company is once again looking at Apple as a potential business model, though things are quite different from the past.

Copilot's chatbot service, Windows Recall, and other AI-related functionalities could soon become known simply as "Windows Intelligence." According to a recently surfaced reference included in a template file for the Group Policy Object Editor (AppPrivacy.adml), Windows Intelligence is the umbrella term Microsoft possibly chose to unify the many AI features currently being integrated into the PC operating system.

Even though putting a trademark on a generic term isn't exactly a viable way of doing business, the first company to infuse some marketing "intelligence" into its products was Apple. Cupertino debuted the Apple Intelligence service in October, with new chatbot-based functionalities available (in preview form) on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS platforms.

If the Windows Intelligence reference proves to be true, Microsoft may soon decide to abandon the Copilot name after using it for over a year. The Windows Intelligence moniker feels like a blatant attempt to mimic Apple's marketing decision, grouping all the AI-based options available in Windows under the new brand.

Microsoft had used the "Intelligence" term before, but the company was talking about security upgrades and not AI features back then. The rebranding effort is already being criticized on X, with Windows users accusing Microsoft of "killing" the operating system by copying everything Apple is doing.

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Brand and trademark decisions aside, Microsoft is more than willing to shower its AI-fueled initiatives with billions of dollars for the foreseeable future. Big Tech organizations are expected to spend $200 billion on AI development by the end of the year, though Wall Street investors are starting to express their concerns with this unprecedented bet on the future of AI.

Microsoft is clearly enthusiastic about AI, but the new features still need a lot of work before becoming an integral part of the Windows ecosystem. Windows Recall, the controversial spying machine designed to record everything a user is doing on their PC, was initially met with a lot of negative feedback. The feature is currently back in preview form as part of the Windows 11 24H2 Update, requires secure access through Windows Hello, and includes a new filter to (hopefully) leave sensitive information out of its intrusive AI tech.