- Microsoft is testing AI-powered search for Windows 11 on PC Copilot+.
- The new feature allows users to find local files using informal language.
- Microsoft is also testing AI-powered ‘Click to Do’ rewriting tools.
Microsoft is testing an AI-powered search feature for Windows 11 that promises to put an end to the days of neatly organizing and naming your files to find them later. Currently only available to testers with PC Copilot+, this new search tool uses semantic indexing to locate files with a conversational touch.
So instead of racking your brain for precise file names, you can now type casual queries like “Where’s that presentation I gave last week?” With a little luck, the AI will find it.
The feature works in Settings, File Explorer, and the taskbar, and covers standard file formats for images, documents, and spreadsheets. Since it is based on built-in AI models, an internet connection is not required. That said, search will only work on locations you’ve chosen to index. You can index everything by switching to the new “enhanced” mode, but that might require more trust in Microsoft than is comfortable.
Still, for those who feel like their digital lives are scattered between desktops, downloads and who knows where, the feature will definitely come in handy, even if it’s limited to the computer for now. That means you still can’t search your OneDrive files stored in the cloud, although Microsoft says that capability is on the way. Still, if you’re not on a Copilot Plus machine, you’re out of luck for now.
Copilot+
The feature is a logical extension of Microsoft’s AI agenda, which aims to integrate AI tools into all of the company’s products. On Copilot+ PCs, those tools include other features being tested, such as Click to Do, which allows users to perform AI-powered tasks with a simple keyboard and mouse shortcut. Simply highlight a piece of text, hold down the Windows key, and click to access a menu of options, including “Retype” and “Refine” grammar correction.
Microsoft’s AI ambitions are clearly about making people’s lives easier, provided they’ve invested in the right hardware. Moving from rigid orders to a more human approach has obvious appeal. The days of typing exact file names or endless keywords could be numbered. And it’s a relatively small step from helping you find your PowerPoint presentation to helping you write it.
It’s still debatable whether this is the killer app that gets people to buy a Copilot+ PC like Microsoft wants. But if it can prevent you from renaming files to “final_final_v2” for the millionth time, it may be worth it.
