Copilot on Windows 11 isn’t interesting anymore. The Copilot button no longer makes sense, as Microsoft has downgraded Copilot in Windows to just a web wrapper. When I say web wrapper, I mean the Copilot app now literally opens copilot.windows.com in Microsoft Edge and is no longer tied to the taskbar or deeply integrated into Windows.
When Copilot arrived on Windows 11, it was pinned next to the Start menu button. A few months later, Microsoft replaced the “Show Desktop ” button with Copilot, which currently opens in a right sidebar. It also replaced Win + C keyboard shortcut, previously used for Cortana.
This shows that Microsoft has always aggressively pushed Copilot on Windows 11. It also tested Windows integration in Copilot, including an experiment that allows you to open settings and change themes from light to dark using Copilot.
Additionally, Microsoft added Copilot to Windows 10, which was surprising because Microsoft has repeatedly stated the OS is on security support. In one of the preview builds, the company had tested support for transferring files between local drives using Copilot.
Unfortunately, Windows 11’s latest update, which is rolling out to some people, removes these improvements and turns Copilot into a “web app.”
The new Copilot app no longer opens as a sidebar or integrates with Windows, which means it cannot open or change Windows settings anymore.
What’s even worse is that Microsoft has put little to no effort into integrating Copilot into Windows.
For example, if you right-click anywhere in the new Copilot app for Windows, you can view all Edge-related settings and options. With a couple of clicks here and there, you could even open an unrelated website within the Copilot container. That’s because the Copilot “app” for Windows simply opens the copilot.microsoft.com in Microsoft Edge.
You don’t really need the app as the same experience is available via any web browser.
Microsoft has also made it easier to remove Copilot from Windows. All you need to do is search for Copilot and select “uninstall.” This will remove the app.
In an update to its blog post on June 19, Microsoft stated that Copilot has been turned into a web app following “feedback from users throughout the preview of Copilot in Windows”, and Microsoft is confident this model (Edge-based web wrapper) will allow everyone to benefit more.
Microsoft justifies the “downgrade” by touting new features, such as the ability to resize, move and snap the Copilot window.
“This model also allows Microsoft to more agilely develop and optimize the experience based on user feedback,” Microsoft noted.
However, the company won’t tell us when the old features will return to Copilot in Windows.
It’s possible these features will return in a future release, but it doesn’t make sense to downgrade the integration and celebrate it as an update that everyone wanted.
