Microsoft launched its Copilot Plus line of computers earlier this week, which feature new dedicated Copilot keys on their keyboards. This is the first major change to the Windows keyboard in 30 years, but all the key does now is launch a Progressive Web App (PWA) version of Copilot.
The web app isn’t even integrated into Windows anymore, like the Copilot experience was from last year, so you can’t use Copilot to control Windows 11 settings or dock it as a sidebar. It’s really just a PWA. Microsoft has even removed the keyboard shortcut for Copilot on these new Copilot Plus PCs, so WINKEY + C has no effect.
I hope Microsoft develops the Copilot key into something that can be used like the Windows key, combined with other keys to launch shortcuts for applications, or even shortcuts for artificial intelligence features in Windows. This will make it much more useful than just launching a PWA.
Microsoft has yet to explain why it changed Copilot from a more integrated experience in Windows to a web application that no longer controls Windows settings. “We’re also evolving the Copilot experience on Windows into a pinned app to the taskbar,” the Windows Insider team said in a recent blog post. “This allows users to get the benefits of a traditional app experience, including The ability to resize, move and snap windows – we heard feedback from users during our preview of Copilot in Windows.”
Microsoft says that as a result of these changes, it will be able to “develop and optimize more agilely” the Copilot experience, so perhaps we’ll see some future changes that make the return of this feature make sense. Until then, the new Copilot key will replace the menu key (applications key) on the new Copilot Plus PC keyboard, and Microsoft has also pinned the Copilot application to the taskbar, so you don’t even need to use a dedicated key.
