Microsoft launches program to test experimental AI features for Windows
What's the story
Microsoft has confirmed the existence of a new initiative, the Windows AI Labs program. The move comes as part of the company's effort to test experimental artificial intelligence (AI)-powered features on its operating system. The facility was first spotted by Windows testers who found references to this program in pre-release updates for Microsoft Paint last week.
Program details
Windows AI Labs aims to gather user feedback on features
The Windows AI Labs program is designed to give users a sneak peek at new AI features coming to Windows. "The Windows AI Lab is a pilot acceleration program for validating novel AI feature ideas in Windows," Mike Harsh, Partner Director of Product Management at Microsoft, told The Verge. He added that the program's main goal is to get quick customer feedback on things like how usable these features are and whether there's interest in them.
Feature testing
Microsoft has been adding AI capabilities to its apps
While the exact features that will be tested through this program are not yet clear, Microsoft has been adding a number of new capabilities to its apps. These include free AI facilities for Notepad, image generation capabilities in Paint, and AI actions in File Explorer. The company has also been adding Photoshop-like capabilities such as transparency and layers to Paint lately.