News in the Channel - issue #12

MICROSOFT WINDOWS 11

Windows on the world Microsoft has updated Windows 11 with a raft of new features to help businesses to become more efficient in a hybrid world, including harnessing the power of artificial intelligence.

The new Windows 11 update delivered more than 150 new features for users, including a revolutionary AI personal assistant. We spoke with Keith Toh, category manager Windows Pro and Edu Device Partner Solutions Sales at Microsoft UK to find out more. News in the Channel: Windows 11 is the best Windows yet, which features do you predict to most benefit end users over the next six to 12 months? Keith Toh (KT): Windows 11 Pro is built for secure hybrid work, and we continue to innovate to bring the best of hybrid work experiences to our fans. On September 26, we announced our best and most ambitious update – 150 features to be exact – to Windows 11, which are now available in the UK. The feature that is generating buzz among our fans is, of course, Copilot in Windows. Copilot in Windows is an AI-powered intelligent assistant that helps you get answers and inspirations from across the web, supports creativity and collaboration, and helps you focus on the task at hand. For instance, Copilot can help you draft a Linkedin post or even a work proposal (best when integrated with Microsoft 365) so you don’t have to start from scratch, saving minutes if not hours of time. With Copilot in Windows, you can use natural language to turn on features that you may not even know to help you be more productive. Examples are setting ‘Focus Time’ features by just prompting ‘help me focus’ or

organising your windows with Snap Assist by asking Copilot to ‘organise my windows’. Existing Windows 11 features will continue to benefit end users. Some popular features include ‘Search on the Taskbar’, which delivers faster, more relevant, and consistent results across the web, apps and files, including dynamically updated search highlights. Snap layouts enables you to drop open apps into pre-configured layouts that automatically adjust to the dimension of your screen and with seamless redocking, your snap groups and other open apps stay in place when you plug into a different monitor so you can pick up where you left off. What impact will AI and Copilot have on the way we work? KT: Eight months ago, we introduced Copilot for Microsoft 365 to reduce digital debt and increase productivity so people can focus on the work that is uniquely human. Just like the question suggests, what everyone wants to know now is: will generative AI really transform work, and how? New data shows that the productivity gains are real. We conducted research using a combination of surveys and experiments

Keith Toh category manager Windows Pro and Edu Device Partner Solutions Sales

microsoft.com/en-gb/ about/

Copilot in Windows is an AI-powered intelligent assistant that helps you get answers and “

to deeply understand how Copilot is transforming work – learning with and

alongside our customers as we scale. Already, Copilot makes people more productive and creative, and saves time. Early users don’t want to go back to working without it: 77% said they don’t want to give it up. And this is just the beginning. As use of generative AI at work spreads, the real opportunity is to not only transform personal productivity but lift the capability of the entire organisation. Copilot sets a new baseline – one where every employee gains the skills to write, design, code, analyse data, and more. And it amplifies expertise, taking work from good to exceptional. Across our research 1 , here’s what stood out: l 70% of Copilot users said they were more productive, and 68% said it improved the quality of their work l Overall, users were 29% faster in a

inspirations from across the web, supports creativity and collaboration, and helps you focus on the task at hand.

1. What Can Copilot’s Earliest Users Teach Us About Generative AI at Work? (microsoft.com)

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