Windows Weekly (Audio)

Backlash against tech criticism, Ralf Groene retires, Hardcore Software Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell For full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/877 Sponsors: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT - code TWIT30 kolide.com/ww Melissa.com/twit

On this episode, Paul shares his thoughts on the Snapdragon X Elite chip with Leo and Richard. Windows 11 24H2, AI, NPUs, and SoCs from Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm are all on the way this year. But a schedule is finally starting to emerge. And it looks like we'll soon have answers to the questions about how or why AI will matter on PCs. Windows, AI, and the future Windows 11 version 24H2 - staggered release schedule as discussed last week Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite-based PCs in May/June - nothing but good news to date, but Paul went hands-on last week. It's the real deal. Intel's first-gen Core Ultra chipsets are lackluster, but now we have big promises for Arrow Lake in late 2024 Microsoft Build 2024 is in mid-May, and now we have a session list with some nice clues. For example, Introducing the Next Generation of Windows on Arm Microsoft is expected to unveil 24H2 and new X Elite-based Surface PCs at Build Computex and other milestones, and then back-to-school and holiday selling periods Windows 11 Moment 5 arrives in stable with yesterday's Patch Tuesday (which is now called the General Availability channel, by the way). Of course, we still don't have all the features. In particular, waiting on Android phone as a webcam. IDC says PC market grew by 1.5 percent in Q1 and acts like it's the turnaround of the century Microsoft is manually blocking certain registry keys related to default browsers now: Apple-like non-EU belligerence or pragmatic protection of user choice? Why can't it be both? Beta channel (last week) - Copilot actions improvements New Store app update improvements performance dramatically The Windows 11 de-ensh*ttification experiments continue Does Windows 11 Enterprise solve the problem? No. So it's time to move on Hardware TSMC gets some of that sweet, sweet CHIPS Act money to expand its US operations AI Three AIs comparison Blockbuster report claims OpenAI/Microsoft, Google, and Meta stole content at scale to train AI Microsoft opens a new AI hub in London Google mulls charging for generative AI in Search Spotify lets user create AI playlists using text prompts now Brave brings Leo to iOS, so it's on all supported platforms now. And it added Leo to Brave Talk Premium too Google rebrands Studio Bot to Gemini in Android Studio, still in preview. This is their GitHub Copilot Xbox Microsoft rolls out April updates for Xbox consoles, Xbox app on PC Xbox reorgs, Kareem Choudhry leaves Microsoft A rumored game preservation team is too obvious not to be true Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Microsoft Store hosts its annual Spring Sale App picks of the week: Standard Notes & Beeper RunAs Radio this week: Securing AI with Sarah Young Brown liquor pick of the week: Dalwhinnie 15 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: cachefly.com/twit

Windows 11 version 24H2 is coming and you're not going to believe what happens next... and then again 6 months later Microsoft reveals Windows 10 Extended Security Updates pricing Paul reinstalled Windows 10 after three years on Windows 11. There's some good and some bad Multiple sources have revealed a staggered release schedule for Windows 11 version 24H2 Insider Builds Canary/Dev - Widgets improvements head out to more people Canary/Dev (today) - New build today with minor changes, bug fixes (24H2 RTM-ish?). Canary/Dev switch is ending soon Microsoft is moving Photos app to Windows App SDK (from UWP, presumably). Paul has theories Microsoft will move the Widgets button in Windows 11 if you put the Start button on the left Dropbox comes to the Microsoft Store in Windows 11. It only took 12 years AI Copilot for Microsoft 365 is getting many new features by the end of April Copilot for Microsoft 365 picks up priority ChatGPT-4 Turbo and no more conversation limits You can use ChatGPT without an account now, asterisk, asterisk Amazon concludes its $4 billion investment in Anthropic Opera is bringing local LLMs to Opera One web browser Google: Just kidding, non-Pro Pixel 8 will get Gemini Nano too, and you can suck on the performance issues Is Intel circling the drain? Antitrust The EU is predictably investigating Apple, Google, Meta, and Amazon—for not complying with the DMA. Notably absent from that list? Microsoft. Which is unique among Big Tech in that it is being reasonable with DMA compliance and antitrust in general Microsoft debundles Teams from Office. Too little too late? Microsoft 365 Microsoft 365 Basic picks up some new features A random Microsoft engineer found a backdoor lurking in a Linux utility and might have saved the world LinkedIn isn't just getting games, it's getting TikTok-style videos too .NET 7 EOL is coming. Is the .NET support schedule too aggressive? Xbox A MASSIVE LIST OF ACTIVISION GAMES ARE COMING TO GAME PASS! Just kidding, you're getting Shadow of the Tomb Raider, jerks Xbox is getting an AI-powered support agent. Huh. Kind of like a personal assistant then. If only they had a name for this thing Phil Spencer says he's open to rival games stores on Xbox Take-Two is buying (most of) Gearbox for $460 million. A Grand Theft Auto and Duke Nukem cross-over is inevitable Rumored white Xbox Series X emerges. White and discless? YOU'RE white and discless! Tips & Picks Tip of the week: You can still access legacy File Explorers in Windows 11 App pick of the week: Two for two RunAs Radio this week: Microsoft Copilot for Security with George Coldham Brown liquor pick of the week: Clonakilty Irish Whiskey Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT

On Windows Weekly, Moment 5 has arrived as a Preview Update, Windows 10 gets a preview update, and Microsoft announces the Surface Pro 10 & Surface Laptop 6 for Business at a digital event. Designer and Copilot are coming to the Microsoft 365 mobile app. Would Microsoft develop a Windows-based gaming handheld device? And Canva acquires Affinity. Windows Moment 5 arrives as a Preview Update right on schedule - it's Week D, etc. Microsoft previously described this schedule in its DMA compliance documentation, and noted that it would be fully deployed in stable by the end of April. Quick raise of hands: Did you think this was already available? You're not alone. But ... you know. Microsoft. Oh, and there's a preview update for Windows 10 too. Because come on Microsoft. Don't worry, that lock screen nonsense in Windows 10 is coming to Windows 11 too. Qualcomm claims that most Windows games will "just work" on its X Elite processor. How? Chromium accepts Microsoft commit that will improve Chrome/Chromium text rendering on Windows. Google Chrome comes to Windows on Arm, instantly legitimatizing the platform. Surface Microsoft announces Surface Pro 10, Surface Laptop 6. For businesses, only - Intel Core Ultra-based. Consumer versions based on X Elite to follow in May, according to reliable rumors. It's first "AI PCs," supposedly. But now we know why they are using that terminology, and it's stupid. (Related, Intel has its own definitions for what makes a PC an AI PC.) This was billed as an AI event, "the new era of work," but there was NO news for Windows or Copilot. None. Why is that? One word: Momentum. AI In the wake of Microsoft AI reorg (a NeXT-style takeover), a key Microsoft exec says no and steps aside, will likely leave the company Microsoft Teams is gaining new AI capabilities because, duh, of course it is Designer and Copilot are coming to the Microsoft 365 mobile app - Two more checkmarks for that grid of Copilot capabilities Our developer show schedule is complete: Apple to host WWDC 2024 in June, following Google I/O and Build in May Samsung spreads Galaxy A1 to more devices starting tomorrow in the US Xbox It's finally happening: Diablo IV will be the first Activision Blizzard game on Xbox Game Pass when it goes live tomorrow. Phil Spencer says Windows is wrong for gaming handhelds, thinks an Xbox would be better. Xbox is testing mouse and keyboard support for Cloud Gaming. Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Arc browser just became more viable on Windows. App pick of the week: Affinity Photo 2 Also: Proton Pass now supports (portable) passkeys. And it's free. RunAs Radio this week: GitHub for SysAdmins with April Edwards. Brown liquor pick of the week: Stauning Kaos Danish Whisky. Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: zscaler.com/zerotrustAI kolide.com/ww GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

On this episode, Paul, Richard, and Mikah talk AI developments, Windows 10 (yes, 10), Azure egress, and even VR gaming! Is the new Microsoft AI organization an "acquisition" in disguise? How did NVIDIA's recent GTC keynote go? Plus, why it makes sense for Apple to partner with Google for Gemini on iPhone. AI Reorg Microsoft has created a new Microsoft AI "organization" that reports directly to Satya Nadella Led by former Inflection co-founders and staffed in part by several ex-Inflection employees Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott, who orchestrated Microsoft's OpenAI partnership, will continue forward in his other role as executive vice president of AI and will remain responsible for Microsoft's overall AI strategy Mikhail Parakhin and the entire team responsible for Copilot, Bing, and Edge, plus Misha Bilenko and the GenAI team, will move into Microsoft AI. Rajesh Jha will continue as executive vice president of Experiences & Devices and will "partner closely with Mustafa and team" on Copilot for Microsoft 365. What does this mean for Windows? (Paul's guess: Not much. Windows is still presumably under Jha) Windows Windows 10 (Yes, 10, not 11) is getting new Sports, Traffic, and Finance cards on the lock screen for some reason No new Insider builds since last week! WHAAAAAT? Microsoft 365 No AI for you! Microsoft announces perpetual Office 2024 and Office 2024 LTSC for late 2024 AI for you! Microsoft 365 web apps now support Copilot Pro users Better AI for you! Free Copilot gets ChatGPT-4 Turbo (previously a paid feature) Microsoft follows Google and AWS, ends Azure egress fees - the other European Big Tech battleground AI Apple is almost certainly going to (try to) partner with Google on AI for iPhone How the F is Microsoft not part of this? Google I/O is set for May 14, Apple WWDC will be in June, both to focus on AI (duh) Microsoft to host "AI and Surface event" right before Build 2024 in May Nvidia is determined to not just ride the AI wave, but win it In the wake of a subtle rebranding, Google is bringing generative AI to Fitbit Amazon is bringing generative AI for product pages to sellers Xbox New games across Game Pass for the second half of March - including, for the first time, an Activision Blizzard title, Diablo IV Microsoft is killing the Microsoft Rewards app on Xbox... though there is a Rewards tab on your Profile page. LinkedIn is experimenting with games because everything has to suck now Sony halts PSVR2 production because no one wants to pay $550 for VR on PS5 Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Steam Sale goes through tomorrow (March 21) App picks of the week: Stardock ObjectDock 3, Proton Mail native app, Firefox 124 RunAs Radio this week: From SysAdmin to Platform Engineer with Steve Buchanan Brown liquor pick of the week: Bull Run Oregon Single Malt Whiskey Hosts: Paul Thurrott, Richard Campbell, and Mikah Sargent Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: zscaler.com/zerotrustAI Melissa.com/twit

Can we have a Windows experience tailored for enterprise efficiency? Paul, Richard, and Mikah unpack the freshest updates from Windows 11's March 2024 Patch Tuesday, dissect Microsoft's transparency behind Midnight Blizzard's November attack, and speculate on Microsoft's much-anticipated Surface/AI event. Plus, Paul offers insights from his time with Copilot Pro's custom GPT builder. Windows 11 Patch Tuesday new features: Phone Link settings is renamed to Mobile devices, USB 80 Gbps support, more - Windows 10 users get some love (hate?) too Microsoft confirms that Moment 5 will be delivered in the March preview update, fully deployed in late April Microsoft details how it is changing Windows in the EU - and now we all want to move to the EU Beta (last week): New Copilot actions experiment Dev and Canary: Unified Teams experience, Copilot updates to more people, Power Automate via Copilot in Windows, Live Captions quick settings tile, progress bars in Taskbar icons, File Explorer file copy improvements, etc Beta (today): Most frequently used apps now appear in Recommended Microsoft Microsoft continues to dribble out details about that Russia-sponsored hack and the news is predictably getting worse each time We have an event! March 21st will focus on Copilot, Windows, and Surface AI Microsoft brings Custom GPT Builder to Copilot Pro subscribers Here comes Copilot for Security. April 1 rollout is perfect Teams app developers get AI capabilities via a free Microsoft toolkit Opera Feature Drops to bring new AI features early to Opera One EU moves to the AI Act Microsoft 365 Microsoft finally spells out its commercial deployment schedule/plans for the new Outlook. Let the complaining continue Skype is updated with new Channels features, prompting questions about Skype still being alive Parallels Desktop for Mac is updated with Clipboard and game improvements for Windows VMs Xbox Some Activision QA works vote to unionize More Microsoft Studio titles come to Boosteroid, that service you only heard of because of the Microsoft acquisition of Activision Blizzard Tips & Picks Tip of the week: Time zone math App pick of the week: Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story is now available! Plus, Joplin (a Notion alternative) RunAs Radio this week: Understanding Large Language Models with Jodie Burchell Brown liquor pick of the week: Bushmills 21 Hosts: Paul Thurrott, Richard Campbell, and Mikah Sargent Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: cachefly.com/twit

This week, Paul, Richard, and Leo unpack the twice-delayed unveiling of Moment 5 for Windows 11 and the long list of small features it brings to users, alongside whispers of new Surface devices on the horizon. Plus, they dissect the implications of Elon Musk's critical eye on OpenAI and the captivating prospect of upscaling classic adventure games via DirectSR. "Moment 5" Moment 5 is here. Sort of. In preview. Well, some features This was supposed to happen before last week's Windows Weekly, but the announcement was delayed twice Windows 11 Microsoft quietly reveals that it is killing the Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA), triggering two reactions: "Who cares?" and "Why?" Beta: Controversial new mouse hover experience for Copilot Dell had double-digit revenue declines in Q4, all of 2024 HP revenues fell 4.8 percent in Q1 Surface Rumor: Microsoft to launch Surface Pro 10 and Laptop 6 soon, with both Intel Core Ultra and Snapdragon X Elite variants AI Microsoft engineer continues to raise disturbing issues with Copilot Microsoft Edge picks up two new AI features: Video highlights and screenshot integration Copilot is coming to OneDrive (commercial) and Microsoft 365 mobile app Microsoft announces Copilot for Finance Microsoft files motion to dismiss parts of the NYT's copyright suite, compares AI to a Betamax machine. Maybe not the smartest comparison Elon Musk sues OpenAI because something something ChatGPT picks up a Read Aloud feature. Is there anything AI can't do?? Anthropic announces a three-tier Claude 3 family of LLMs with the usual claims Apple releases the M3-based MacBook Air. Or should we call it the MacBook AIr? Brave brings Leo AI to Android app Xbox Microsoft comes clean on DirectSR, will say more soon Xbox Partner Preview event today - Final Fantasy XIV, STALKER Original Trilogy, more announced MLB The Show 24, more come to Xbox Game Pass in March Linux exceeds 4 percent usage share for the first time. Is this the "SteamDeck" effect? Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Twitter user? Disable this new feature immediately App picks of the week: LibreOffice, Vivaldi, Anytype RunAs Radio this week: Upgrading TLS with Scott Helme Brown liquor pick of the week: Hornitos Black Barrel Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: kolide.com/ww

The newest version of Windows 11 is entering a new rollout phase. Some new exciting hardware from Lenovo emerged from this year's Mobile World Congress. And Paul has been using Copilot Pro for some time and is quite happy with it so far! Windows Windows 11 version 23H2 enters a new rollout phase - the "you're getting it whether you want it or not" phase. Canary: Wi-Fi 7 support, 16 new actions for Windows (+13 there already), separates from Dev channel again. Photos app to get generative erase functionality. Hardware Snapdragon X Elite destroys Intel Core Ultra in AI performance tests. Is this finally the year of Windows on Arm? Intel rolls out vPro versions of Core Ultra for businesses. Lenovo imagines transparent displays, ships actual ThinkPads. HP brings NPUs to its consumer PCs. Samsung Galaxy Book4 series is now available in the U.S. with unique Copilot features. Microsoft lays out its 2024 event calendar, and Ignite is in Chicago in November! AI Microsoft (quietly) adds four GPTs to Microsoft Copilot. Microsoft partners with Mistral AI, and gets immediate regulatory notice GitHub Copilot Enterprise is now available with organizational GPTs Google pauses Gemini image creation after, um, some issues Help Me Write is now in Google Chrome Brave Leo now supports PDFs and Google Drive Xbox Xbox will attend GDR, and will discuss DirectSR Microsoft starts testing Game Hubs in Xbox app for PC Lots of Age of Empire releases this year GeForce Now Free is adding pre-roll advertising Tips and picks Tip of the week: Turn off Microsoft Start in Widgets. Widget is finally closer to what most people will want. App pick of the week: Microsoft Copilot Pro Podcast pick of the week: Copilot Governance with Martina Grom Brown liquor pick of the week: Ian Macleod's Isle of Skye Range Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

Microsoft's big Xbox strategy event was exactly what Paul expected it was going to be. Hopefully, this calmed some nerves. Xbox strategy reveal It was going to be about Activision Blizzard originally (nailed it) All first-party games will be in Game Pass on day one (as is the case now) Game Pass will only be on Xbox (whatever "Xbox" means as it's on PC too) The strategy is unchanged: Meet gamers where they are But the best experience is on Xbox (this is like going from "Windows only" to "Windows first" to "Windows best") Portability across hardware platforms is a key part of the strategy - Backward Compatibility, etc. A future generation of Xbox console hardware will offer "the largest technical leap you have ever seen in a hardware generation." Oh, and four games are coming to "other consoles." Windows 11 Microsoft is quietly adding off-ramps to the Insider Program after killing the Magic window with their screwed-up release schedule Canary and Dev - 24H2, same builds. New navigation pane in Widgets - new accessibility setting for low-vision users - that same tired weather experience on the lock screen that is already in stable and seriously kill me now I can't stand this company anymore. Oh, and there are ISOs. Beta - New prompts for that "manage mobile devices" features, updates to Snipping Tool and Notepad (also in RP) Release Preview - We're testing Moment 5 now, so this is a huge update Microsoft fixed a bug that let Edge siphon browser data from other browsers Stardock brings pre-release support for Arm versions of Start11, Fences, and Groupy to new Object Desktop Insider program Google has an answer for those out of support Windows 10 PCs Build 2024 Microsoft confirms that Build 2024 is May 21-23 in Seattle. No word on press invites Microsoft 365 Microsoft will finally unify the Teams clients on Windows and Mac Microsoft is killing Publisher in 2 years and even though no one uses it, people are freaking out AI Microsoft to use Intel Foundry for at least one in-house custom AI chip Now OpenAI is worth over $80 billion, is world's third-biggest unicorn OpenAI announces Sora and... HOLY #$%^ Gemini (formerly Duet AI) comes to all Workspace customers Google brings Gemini down to size with Gemma for free, local use Adobe Acrobat is getting an AI assistant Xbox Game streaming is (probably) coming to all the Xbox games you own More (non-AB) games are coming to Game Pass in February Microsoft goes after Apple's non-compliance DMA compliance in the EU Epic announces a game store for iOS in Europe, will launch this year Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story will release on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch on March 13 Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Androids by Chet Haase App picks of the week: Dashlane, Firefox 123, Bonjourr Cocktail of the week: Sumi - This is a "clasicos Baltra" from the most famous bar in Mexico City. Tanqueray Ten Gin, Violet liqueur, Jasmine syrup, Yuzu, Egg white. Serve in a coupe glass, and garnish with dried flowers. Hosts: Leo Laporte and Paul Thurrott Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: Miro.com/podcast Melissa.com/twit

On this spicy episode of Windows Weekly, Paul, Leo, and Richard try to pronounce "Sudo," watch an expensive Copilot ad, marvel at big Arm revenues, discuss the latest in internet browser news, and debate the FTC's motivations as they go after Microsoft once again! Windows 11 Big changes in Insider, with Canary and Dev moving to the same 24H2 builds Windows 11 is going to get its AI moment this year With the announcement of 24H2, does that mean nothing big mid-year as rumors suggested? Patch Tuesday arrives. Copilot moves to the right of the system tray after 10 seconds of testing Brave ships its browser on Arm in stable Windows will likely get an AI game upscaling feature AI/Antitrust Report: Azure is allegedly 2/3rds the size of AWS by revenue, thanks to AI Microsoft Bing and Edge avoid the EU DMA Google Gemini officially replaces Bard Grammarly lays off 230 to focus on AI Mozilla scales back dramatically, will focus on AI in Firefox Arc Sync comes to Arc on Mac only Cloud/server/dev Google One surpasses 100 million users. New AI tier is coming to take on Copilot Pro Arm revenues are in. Look at those margins! Notion acquires Skiff. Ladies and gentlemen, the Notion Office is coming .NET 9 Preview 1 arrives. Are annual updates too much? Xbox Xbox says it will come clean on its strategy The FTC claims that Xbox layoffs violate the terms of its Activision Blizzard acquisition promises Microsoft tells the court that the FTC is wrong on multiple levels There's a new Xbox system update Sony doesn't meet its quarterly PS5 sales target, will miss its annual target, and the PS5 is falling off a cliff Disney invests $1.5 billion in Epic Games. "F U, Apple!" Flight Simulator jumps the Minecraft Shark Tips and Picks Tip of the Week: Microsoft PC Manager - Avoid at all costs App Picks of the Week: DuckDuckGo browser, Apple TV+, Apple Music, Apple Devices for Windows RunAs Radio this week: Maximizing Metadata with Emily Manicini Brown liquor pick of the week: Starward Pedro Ximenez Cask Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: kolide.com/ww

One year of Copilot, Arc's Act II, Mozilla Monitor Plus Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell For full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/867 Sponsor: cachefly.com/twit

Microsoft announced Tuesday that it earned a net income of $21.9 billion on revenues of $62 billion in the quarter ending December 31, 2023. Those figures are up 33 percent and 18 percent, respectively, year-over-year (YOY) Intelligent Cloud: Azure, AI Microsoft's biggest business unit delivered $25.9 billion in revenue, up 20 percent YOY and driven primarily by its Azure cloud platform Azure revenues were up 30 percent in the quarter, 6 points of which Microsoft attributed to "AI services" Productivity and Business Processes: Microsoft 365 $19.2 billion in revenues, with growth of 13 percent YOY Office Commercial revenues were up 15 percent More Personal Computing: Xbox, Windows Revenues of $16.9 billion, up 19 percent YOY Gaming revenues surged 49 percent (44 points from Activision Blizzard) Xbox hardware revenues inched up by 3 percent Windows revenues from PC makers grew 11 percent in the quarter Windows Canary: Voice Clarity comes to more PCs, and Microsoft previews new/old Windows Setup first-run experience Dev: Minor bug fixes only Beta: Snap Layout suggestions, new settings in Widgets, and you can now revert to stable (!!) Microsoft 365 Teams goes down for the count AI Microsoft adds deepfake guardrails to Designer AI. So, this wasn't there before now? FTC is investigating Microsoft/OpenAI and other Big Tech AI partnerships Xbox Microsoft can finally bring Xbox Cloud Gaming to the iPhone (and Fortnite is coming back to the iPhone in the EU) 1900 layoffs at Activision Blizzard, Zenimax, and Xbox Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Upgrade to passkeys App pick of the week: Insync RunAs Radio this week: Software Licensing with Mary Jo Foley Brown liquor pick of the week: Dailuaine 16 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

In this episode of Windows Weekly, Leo, Paul, and Richard cover Microsoft's recent hack, new Windows Insider updates, Copilot Pro's image creativity, various browsers, education's compatibility with generative AI, Halo Infinite's slowdown, Notion's calendar service, and Japanese whisky. Microsoft was hacked A Russia-backed hacker group infiltrated a legacy system and gained access to executive emails This is triggering an escalation in Microsoft's security makeover either way Windows 11 Beta channel: USB 80 Gbps/USB4 v2 support, bug fixes Dev channel: Teams (commercial) meeting integration in Start, new mobile device management interface New Surface event rumored for March. Possibly two waves of Pro and Laptop releases Microsoft Bing and Edge are obviously not dominant platforms, and will not be subject to EU DMA Microsoft Mesh is here for all your legless meeting needs AI Microsoft hits $3 trillion market cap on the strength of its AI moves Paul used Copilot Pro and you're never going to believe what happened next Microsoft is bringing more AI to education. And so is Google Would you pay for an AI-infused Alexa? Web browsers, oh my Chrome is updated with new AI features Firefox version 122 is out Brave will simplify fingerprint protection. What is fingerprint protection? Opera will pay a brand ambassador $10,000 to spend a month on a deserted Icelandic island Xbox Microsoft reveals several new games for 2024, key among them an Indiana Jones title 343 slows down Halo Infinite updates dramatically. Is this just about Halo or a hint at a looming new trend? Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Is it even possible to prevent online tracking? App pick of the week: Arc browser RunAs Radio this week: AI for IT with Gil Pekelman Brown liquor pick of the week: Hibiki Harmony Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: Melissa.com/twit kolide.com/ww

Outlook, privacy, and the terribleness of Big Tech New Outlook Decried as a "Surveillance Tool for Targeted Advertising One perspective: How terrible are other companies like Google and Meta? But also, how terrible are Windows 11, Teams, Microsoft Edge, etc? Supreme Court refuses to hear Epic v. Apple appeals So, Epic wins on one important count, being able to communicate to their own customers But Apple is still being terrible because it can be. Will the EU finally take care of this? Google unlinking its services in the EU, Apple removing pulse ox from Watch in the US, Google comes clean on Incognito, and Microsoft Cloud lets EU customers keep data locally, it just keeps coming Copilot all the things Richard correctly predicted that 2024 would be the year that Microsoft stopped talking about AI and started implementing AI. But who could have predicted THIS in the first two weeks (!) of the year? Copilot Pro for consumers, Copilot for Microsoft 365 for all commercial customers with no baseline, Copilot on mobile, Copilot in Microsoft 365 mobile, Copilot GPT Builder on the way But there's a real vulnerability for Microsoft and its AI aims here - Too soon, too little may be a mistake Microsoft and Vodafone, sitting in a tree Plus: No Copilot AI (SLM) on the Galaxy S24 family? Interesting. Is Google trying to undermine that partnership and bring Samsung back into the fold? Windows 11 PC sales for 2023: Good news, bad news. OK, it's just bad news They're doing it again: After almost literally no testing, Microsoft launches new Weather experience on the lock screen and makes it the default Store app install notifications are in stable now too Dev: USB 80 Gbps support, auto-start Copilot on 27-inch+ displays, Windows Share (as below) improvements, fixes Beta: More Windows Share improvements (WhatsApp, Gmail, X, Facebook, and LinkedIn URL sharing), Weather experience on Lock, Microsoft Store with instant arcade games and app install notifications Release Preview: New KB update gives us our second near-final peek at Moment 5, with more "Ink Everywhere," eye control system support, 7-ZIP support improvements, other fixes Microsoft will reportedly bring back the Windows Insider Program's Beta Channel for Windows 10 because they were just kidding about that whole "no new features" thing Dev Home comes to Windows 10 Xbox January's Game Pass titles, still no Activision Blizzard Xbox fixes Baldur's Gate save bug Ubisoft mixes up its Ubisoft+ subscriptions Tips & Picks Tip of the week: Maybe this is the year of NextDNS App pick of the week: Brave RunAs Radio this week: Copilots for Power Platform with April Dunnam Brown liquor pick of the week: Writer's Tears Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: meraki.cisco.com/twit Miro.com/podcast

It's CES, so let's observe a moment of silence for all the stupid #*$% our colleagues are covering right now! But there is some wheat in the chaff, of course Intel announces 14th Gen Core desktop and mobile chips. But wasn't Meteor Lake was mobile only? PC makers announce a lot of Meteor Lake PCs: Acer, Acer again, HP, Lenovo, Samsung, more, plus the MSI Claw mobile gaming handheld and the first ASUS NUC! Paul's been using an HP Spectre x360 14 for the past month, what's the AI stuff really like? It's not just Intel: NVIDIA goes nuts on AI and AMD has new AI-powered CPUs Google announces improvements across the Android ecosystem - Quick Share Amazon adopts Matter Casting - and now we have too many of these things - what about Microsoft? Thread will finally fix networking and thus Matter Windows 11 Microsoft announces a Copilot new key for Windows keyboards - settle down, everyone Beta channel (last Thursday): Bug fixes - after the Dev/Canary updates of last Wednesday Quick Windows 11 Field Guide update - 160 pages of new 23H2 content in two months, now 1058 pages long, so download the latest version Microsoft is reportedly looking to add AI writing assistance to Notepad. For some reason Microsoft 365 Awesome! Microsoft PC hardware to be sold now by Incase Almost four years later, it looks like Microsoft will finally make Teams (free) an actual Teams client Apple tries to stamp down the CES hype, announces Apple Vision Pro launch date AI OpenAI responds to the NYT and... yikes. Did AI write this? It admits that ChatGPT does what the NYT claimed Has met with "dozens" of news orgs but can only cite four actual partnerships, and licensing costs are confidential Emphatically cites the fair use argument, which is an open discussion and not clear-cut Offers an opt-out for news publishers, but only since August, so after it used all the NYT content Says the NYT is not telling the full story. Right, it's telling its side of the story. Just like OpenAI Interesting details about negotiations between the two Seeks constructive partnership in a final olive leaf EU is investigating the Microsoft/OpenAI partnership, following U.S. FTC and UK CMA Pennsylvania adopts OpenAI's ChatGPT Enterprise OpenAI launches GPT Store for ChatGPT Plus, Team and Enterprise users Now we know which Microsoft executive is sort of on the OpenAI board Duolingo lays off staff because AI is so good Xbox Microsoft could be bringing Xbox exclusives to PlayStation Microsoft is bringing back the Xbox Developer_Direct event on January 18 Minecraft Legends, RIP Big changes to GeForce Now: New Xbox titles, day passes, more Layoffs at Twitch After its failed coup of the userbase, Unity lays off 25 percent of its workforce Tips and Picks Tip of the week: We need to talk about password managers App pick of the week: Alternative web browsers RunAs Radio this week: Hardening Active Directory with Jerry Devore Brown liquor pick of the week: Bearface Triple Oak Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT cachefly.com/twit

Microsoft finally kills Windows Mixed Reality Just in time for Christmas, Microsoft revealed that its long-dead WMR platform is now officially dead Windows 11 Moment 5 is allegedly coming in February Microsoft quietly reissues Windows 11 version 23H2 installation media Microsoft kills install from web capabilities in Windows App Installer (MSIX) Dev (today): Richer weather experience on Lock, more Voice access improvements Canary (today): Same Voice access changes, no more WordPad or People in a clean install, Steps Recorder deprecated, new Energy Saver icon in the system tray, Nearby Sharing can name your PC Surface New Surface Pro 6 and Laptop 6 are expected in Spring 2024 with Intel and Qualcomm chipsets. Microsoft's first "real" AI PCs. FU, Surface Laptop Studio 2 buyers! Microsoft 365 Something to consider for 2024: Have Microsoft's core platforms gotten too complex? And when/if this will drive away customers? Standalone Copilot app launches on Android ... and then, days later, on iPhone and iPad - And it offers a ChatGPT4 mode, interestingly AI New York Times sues Microsoft, OpenAI for massive copyright infringement GitHub Copilot Chat is now GA. Requires $10/month GitHub Copilot sub, but it may be the single best example of how AI can improve our lives so far Xbox New Xbox Game Pass titles for early January: Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Resident Evil 2 remake, more Does something smell better around here? Bobby Kotick has left the building PlayStation: Just kidding, you can keep your stupid Discovery shows Meta Quest 2 gets a permanent price cut Steam no longer supports Windows 7 or 8.1 Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Properly secure your Microsoft account App pick of the week: MSEdgeRedirect Bonus pick: MediaSorter RunAs Radio this week: Doing More with Less in 2024 with Erin Chapple Brown liquor pick of the week: Elijah Craig Small Batch Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: kolide.com/ww

Looking back at Windows Weekly's best moments from 2023 Welcoming Richard aboard, and setting the table for an AI-filled year "I have been a good Bing" and other chatbot awkwardness Leo's Parallels 18 for Mac demonstration UK CMA blocks the Activision Blizzard deal, and it makes no sense Build 2023 was a great showing for Steven Pathiche, but a strange showing for Panos Panay Microsoft beats the Federal Trade Commission in court, inching a step closer to their acquisition Discord chat with Sean, a sign language interpreter and CODA! Panos Pany leaves Microsoft, but did he jump or get pushed? Giant Xbox leak reveals new console refreshes, a controller, and a roadmap for the future Impressions from the AI September event, including the sweeping Copilot rebrand. Activision Blizzard is finally acquired after much struggle A token Thurrant about OneDrive and its near-endless push to back up Paul's folders A classic beer pick from the one and only Mary Jo Foley! Host: Leo Laporte Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT

On the last episode of 2023, Richard Campbell, Paul Thurrott, and Leo Laporte are joined by a lovely guest to look back (and look ahead) on Microsoft's progress and accomplishments. Between a Teams milestone, Meteor Lake chipset's release, AI music creation in Copilot, Bobby Kotick's upcoming exit, and Microsoft's Countdown Sale, there's plenty of news left to digest at the end of this eventful year! Happy holidays, dozers! Windows 11/Microsoft 365 Microsoft will FINALLY fix the dumbest File Explorer bug of all - no, not that File Explorer bug Microsoft is suddenly deprecating tons of Windows features Windows Insider: Windows 11 Beta build 22635.2915 is the last Insider build of 2023. Nothing major: Voice access supports multiple displays, Windows 365 Boot and Windows 365 Switch from last week's Dev build, Notepad update with Notepad an "Edit with Notepad" item in the File Explorer context menu, and a character count display Microsoft Teams now has 320 million users, 2,000 apps in the Teams store, and over 145,000 custom line-of-business (LOB) apps built by enterprises AI Microsoft partners with Suno to bring music creation to Copilot - OH AND THERE ARE PLUG-INS THERE NOW TOO A few insider notes about this generation of Intel chips Intel's Core Ultra chipset is coming to Chromebooks too Look back/Look Ahead What's left to say Copilots? There are lots (at least announced) and even more are coming Is 2024 going to be the year of the AI PC? Or is this just another fad/bubble "Windows 12" or whatever the vNext is called: Huzzah! Ready or not, the new Outlook for Windows and new Teams are coming How will Activision Blizzard impact Xbox? Antitrust Activision Blizzard settles 2021 class action lawsuit that triggered the acquisition by Microsoft Bobby Kotick on the outs Dec 29 In wake of antitrust loss, Google also settles Play Store suit, will pay $700 million to victims Adobe bails on Figma. Just kidding! Xbox Leak shows that Sony is very worried about Xbox now Sony has sold 50 million PS5s, has outsold Xbox 3-to-1 in 2023 Google extends Stadia controller conversion timeline Tips and picks Tip of the week: Microsoft's Countdown sale brings big discounts to Xbox, Surface, more App pick of the week: MediaSorter RunAs Radio this week: Azure Arc Guest Configuration with Jodi Boone Enterprise pick of the week: Directions on Microsoft's got some (free) resources worth checking out Brown liquor pick of the week: The Spirit of Scotland 46 & Monkey Shoulder Beer pick of the week: Back Home Beer Yalda Queen Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Guest: Mary Jo Foley Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsor: cachefly.com/twit

Grab your favorite whisky and join Paul, Richard, and Leo as they meander through a delightfully geeky/tipsy conversation spanning Windows updates, AI advancements, Big Tech antitrust issues, and more! Windows 11 The final Patch Tuesday of 2023 arrives Copilot now opens on the display where you click its Taskbar icon (or it will, thanks to CFR) Copilot now appears in Alt + Tab (but not in Task view/WINKEY + Tab), oddly (Same deal) Account notifications in Start and Settings (disable this nonsense in Settings > Privacy & security > General) For Windows 10 users, Copilot is now available to everyone in preview with the Patch Tuesday update (CFR, need to manually download it). No Windows integration settings yet. A few other changes on Windows 10 too Canary/Dev (Thursday): Copilot undocked mode, Widgets changes, Windows 365 Boot and Switch changes, Windows Share improvements (WhatsApp integration, curious), character count in Notepad (how cute) Beta channel (Friday): Windows Share and Windows Store improvements Dev channel (today): Transitioning Windows Speech Recognition (WSR) to voice access because WSR is being deprecated Also Canary: New Windows Protected Print Mode Clipchamp quietly added four new features recently, and you're never going to believe what happens next AMD unveils Ryzen 8040 series mobile CPUs with a new NPU on select models Intel's Meteor Lake is coming in hot Antitrust UK CMA and US FTC are both investigating Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI After failing to reach a settlement, Google loses Epic antitrust trial Why it has so far done much better against Google than it has against Apple? Apple to be punished for App Store business practices in the EU Apple likely to open up NFC chipset in iPhone in response to EU concerns AI Microsoft reaches agreement with AFL/CIO on AI Google Releases Gemini Pro to enterprises and developers Google releases Gemini-powered NotebookLM in the U.S. Keep on steroids, basically Xbox An ad-supported Xbox Game Pass offering is likely on the way Xbox Cloud Gaming is now on Meta Quest 2, Quest 3, and Quest Pro Balder's Gate 3 lands on Xbox Series X|S Microsoft reveals two new games at The Game Awards E3, which has been dead for years, is now officially dead The next Digital Eclipse interactive documentary looks about as amazing as the first Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Get your Xbox Year in Review App pick of the week: Fences 5 RunAs Radio this week: SysAdmin Gifts with Joey Snow & Rick Claus Brown liquor pick of the week: Balvenie Double Wood 12 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT wix.com/studio for This Week in Tech

In this week's Windows Weekly, Paul, Leo, and Richard discuss the extension of Windows 10 support for 3 more years after 2025 for consumers and enterprises, updates on the AI features of Copilot, Google's new AI model Gemini, potential features coming in a future Windows release next year, and the cleanliness of ImageGlass 9. Windows 10 Yep! They're going to support Windows 10 for 3 more years with extended security update (ESU) program. But this time there's a twist! Consumers are going to have the chance to pay annually for the ESU as well. Let the complaints begin Copilot expands to more Windows 10 users Windows 11 Report sees a major Windows release in 2024 The November 2023 Preview Update for Windows 11 shipped on a Monday in December because Microsoft, adding new Copilot features, last preview CU for 2023 Dell earnings - revenues fall 10 percent YOY because the PC market is still horrible Richard bought a computer. Can you guess which one? AI Microsoft to get non-voting board representation at OpenAI Copilot is now GA. Unless you're using Windows 11, apparently. Everyone gets free commercial data protection Copilot gets GPT-4 Turbo, new DALLE-3 model, and more Google goes live with Gemini, including a Nano version for Pixel 8 Pro Microsoft 365/Cloud Microsoft finally releases Seeing AI on Android Evernote restricts free users to 1 notebook, 50 notes - time to switch! Antitrust Federal judge orders Google and Epic to try and settle the case before the jury renders its verdict 30 more venture capital firms tell the FTC to stop harassing Microsoft for Activision Blizzard Google and Amazon have both weighed in on Microsoft's cloud licensing with the UK CMA Xbox Microsoft is betting on the DMA, will create mobile video game store with unnamed partners The first Game Pass titles for December Microsoft explains licensing pop-ups on console Rockstar issues first GTA VI trailer PlayStation reminds the world that no one owns the digital content they purchased Tips and Picks Tip of the week: Stuck on 22H2? You can still upgrade to 23H2 App pick of the week: ImageGlass 9 (Microsoft Store) RunAs Radio this week: Modernizing using M365 with Sharon Weaver Brown liquor pick of the week: Glenfiddich 12 Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin. Sponsors: lookout.com GO.ACILEARNING.COM/TWIT hid.link/wwdemo