Windows 11’s latest update is kind of insane, in a bad way

Microsoft has split the future of Windows between two user groups: those with AI-powered Copilot+ PCs and those without. Microsoft now says that the latest version of Windows 11—that’s Windows 11 version 24H2—will only be offered to those with Copilot+ PCs.

Microsoft said last Saturday that the company has now resumed rolling out Windows 11 version 24H2 to the Release Preview Channel with Build 26100.863. But in a support note, Microsoft adds: “Important: Windows 11, version 24H2 is only available for Copilot+ PCs devices.”

It’s an odd choice for a company that has been mildly obsessed with migrating all of its users to a single code base.

As of May 2024, Statcounter found that Windows 10 is still the dominant OS worldwide, with 64.7 percent market share in the United States. By contrast, Windows 11 makes up about 32.3 percent of the US user base. By gating Windows 11 upgrades behind Copilot+ hardware, Microsoft is probably limiting Windows 11’s reach, at least for now.

To recap, Microsoft is essentially splitting its development into three groups: Windows 10, Windows 11 (legacy hardware), and Windows 11 (Copilot+ hardware). It’s—and I’m editorializing here—just plain nuts.

The update migrates Copilot back to the taskbar, where it will behave like an app. In May, Microsoft detailed many of the changes now available for those with Copilot+ hardware to try in Windows 11 24H2, including Wi-Fi 7 support, HDR backgrounds, Sudo for Windows, and more. “We will be sharing more details in the coming months on many of the new features and improvements included as part of Windows 11, version 24H2 leading up to general availability,” Microsoft said.

For now, however, those features won’t include Recall, which Microsoft put on hold for testing through the usual Windows 11 Insider channels.

The bottom line? Windows 11 24H2 is available to test, but only by those who own Copilot+ hardware. Does this mean that Windows Copilot+ PCs won’t ship with 24H2 on board, so they can optionally test it later? For a launch that’s supposedly all about artificial intelligence, there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of smarts involved in this Windows 11 update.