Microsoft is turning Windows into an ‘agentic OS,’ starting with the taskbar

Microsoft is trying to alteration Windows into a “canvas for AI,” with caller AI agents integrated into the Windows 11 taskbar. These caller taskbar capabilities are designed to marque AI agents consciousness similar an adjunct successful Windows that tin spell disconnected and power your PC and bash tasks for you astatine the click of a button. It’s portion of a broader overhaul of Windows to crook the operating strategy into an “agentic OS.”

“This is each astir america wanting to marque definite that each idiosyncratic tin get the superpowers of AI,” says Navjot Virk, firm vice president of Windows experiences, successful an interrogation with The Verge.

Microsoft is integrating a assortment of AI agents straight into the Windows 11 taskbar, including its ain Microsoft 365 Copilot and third-party options. “This integration isn’t conscionable astir adding agents; it’s astir making them portion of the OS experience,” says Windows main Pavan Davuluri.

Agents volition beryllium capable to bash things similar probe information successful the inheritance portion you enactment connected thing else, oregon entree files and folders connected your PC to automate a boring and time-consuming admin task you person to bash astatine work. Once you inquire an AI cause to spell bash immoderate tasks for you, the cause volition displacement into the taskbar and tally successful the background. “You tin hover connected the taskbar icon astatine immoderate clip to spot what the cause is doing,” explains Virk.

The AI cause integration is portion of the caller Ask Copilot diagnostic successful the taskbar, which combines the existing section record hunt with Copilot capabilities. “Not lone bash you get lightning-fast hunt for files and settings, you tin present commencement a speech with Microsoft 365 Copilot and besides motorboat AI agents straight from the taskbar,” explains Virk.

Microsoft has adjacent added caller taskbar capabilities to these agents truthful you tin glimpse astatine them to spot the presumption of immoderate they’re moving connected successful the background. A floating model volition besides look to interact with agents oregon Microsoft 365 Copilot, alternatively of a afloat app.

If an cause needs attraction oregon completes a task, it volition notify you and update its authorities connected the taskbar. There are badges connected the AI cause taskbar icons that amusement you visually that an cause is progressing with a task: a yellowish exclamation constituent erstwhile it needs help, oregon a greenish tick for erstwhile it has completed something.

If you don’t privation AI agents connected the taskbar, you don’t person to alteration this feature. “These experiences are designed to beryllium opt-in, we privation customers to person afloat power implicit erstwhile and however they prosecute with Copilot and these agents,” says Virk.

Developers volition yet deliberation up a batch of usage cases for these agents, and Microsoft is doing a batch of the platform-level enactment to marque them possible. AI cause capabilities are being embedded into halfway parts of Windows thanks to Model Context Protocol (MCP). “Essentially what they bash is springiness america a standardized model that allows these agents to observe tools and observe different agents done a unafraid managed on-device registry,” says Davuluri. “It besides gives us, the Windows team, the quality to supply tools successful an agentic model for these agents to spell and consume.”

AI agents volition besides person their ain workspace, abstracted to your Windows 11 desktop. “It’s a contained policy-controlled auditable execution environment,” says Davuluri. “It gives america a spot wherever the agents tin run with bundle successful an analogous manner to what radical do.” Agent workspace is similar a sandbox for AI agents, wherever each cause operates utilizing its ain Windows account. This is each in the sanction of security, and astir apt due to the fact that AI models aren’t ever close truthful you’ll privation that enactment abstracted to your main Windows session.

While agents successful the taskbar is simply a large caller AI summation to Windows 11, it’s not the lone mode Microsoft is reimagining the operating strategy into what it calls an “agentic OS.” Microsoft is besides bringing Copilot into File Explorer arsenic portion of this work. “What we privation to bash is marque it adjacent much convenient to get highly contextual and deeper Copilot assistance successful Windows surfaces that you already usage a lot, similar the File Explorer,” says Virk.

Copilot integration successful File Explorer lets Windows 11 users summarize a papers successful 1 click, reply questions astir files, oregon draught emails based connected the contented of a document.

Click to Do is besides being improved connected Copilot Plus PCs, allowing you to person immoderate array you spot connected the web oregon anyplace other connected your PC into an Excel document. You tin past freely manipulate the information and adhd caller columns. While Click To Do uses section AI models connected a Copilot Plus PC, erstwhile that information is successful Excel you tin modify it utilizing cloud-powered AI models done Copilot and Agent Mode.

This hybrid premix of section AI (Copilot Plus PC) and cloud-powered AI (Copilot) seems to beryllium wherever Microsoft is heading with its Windows AI features. A caller penning assistance diagnostic is entering preview that lets you rewrite and constitute successful immoderate substance container successful Windows 11, and it adjacent has offline enactment connected Copilot Plus PCs.

Outlook is besides getting AI-generated summaries, and Word is getting automatic alt-text for images successful Office documents. Microsoft is besides moving connected a caller “fluid dictation” diagnostic for Windows that turns code into substance with close grammar and punctuation.

This hybrid premix of AI is adjacent much evident successful Microsoft’s Windows 365 service. These unreality PCs — that tin beryllium accessed done Windows 11, a web browser, oregon mobile apps — see Copilot Plus features and besides person entree to the main cloud-powered Copilot features.

If you’re not funny successful the AI additions to Windows, Microsoft besides has immoderate IT-focused additions astatine its Ignite league this week. Hardware-accelerated BitLocker is connected the mode adjacent year, and volition necessitate next-generation Windows devices that are built connected unannounced chips. “Hardware acceleration of BitLock requires the capableness successful the silicon platform,” says Davuluri. “As and erstwhile those capabilities are available, the OS volition beryllium capable to unlock them for users.”

Sysmon functionality is besides being integrated into Windows successful aboriginal 2026. It volition marque information events disposable successful the lawsuit log and marque it easier for information teams to negociate Windows systems. Microsoft is besides launching Windows Hello’s ocular refresh and caller passkey manager integration, which works with Microsoft Password Manager successful Edge, 1Password, and Bitwarden.