In its quest to create “Windows Assistant for PCs”, Microsoft has introduced Windows Copilot, a feature aimed at streamlining work across multiple applications.

Copilot is accessible via the taskbar and opens alongside any application. Copilot should therefore, in theory, provide powerful help to users.

However, the first preview of Windows Copilot falls short of expectations. Although it promises features like enabling simple settings like switching to dark mode, the “AI integration” seems far from native. In fact, Copilot looks like a web wrapper, a pane running Bing.com in Microsoft Edge rather than a fully integrated part of Windows 11.

In the example above, I incorrectly asked Windows Copilot to turn off light mode when the device was already in dark mode. Instead of understanding my intent, Copilot searched the query on Bing.com and shared instructions to turn off light mode in Windows.

Copilot is also very slow as it tries to search the web and then perform the “action” like turn on “do not disturb mode”, “light mode”, “night mode”, etc.

As mentioned above, Copilot is basically Bing.com running through Microsoft Edge on Windows 11. It’s a web wrapper and web wrappers basically contain and display web pages, but they don’t quite integrate with each other. done with the rest of the operating system. You may experience issues with responsiveness, speed, and seamless integration.

For example, any delay in loading a webpage in the wrapper can disrupt Copilot’s workflow. Or Copilot does not start when you are not connected to the internet or your internet is slow.

A native version of Windows Copilot, coded directly into Windows 11, would solve these problems. It would seamlessly integrate with the operating system, potentially giving users a more robust, responsive, and reliable experience.

Windows Copilot has a long way to go

Despite its flaws, Windows Copilot has potential.

Microsoft reminded users that this is an early preview and plans to improve and refine the Copilot experience.

Microsoft’s vision for Windows Copilot suggests a potential shift for personal computing, bridging the gap between AI and Windows.

Microsoft plans for the Copilot sidebar to act as a personal assistant, consistently accessible across all apps, tools, and windows. In addition to facilitating operations such as copying and pasting, Windows Copilot should offer more sophisticated assistance such as rewriting, summarizing and explaining content.

The integration of Bing and ChatGPT plugins into Windows Copilot will bring users AI-powered capabilities and experiences and provide developers with innovative ways to engage customers.

Microsoft encourages developers to invest in Bing and ChatGPT plugins, promising that those investments will flow to Windows Copilot.