Having covered several Microsoft events in the past, this week’s special press event where the company unveiled its new line of Surface hardware featuring Qualcomm’s cutting-edge Snapdragon X Series SoCs (what our Editor-in-Chief calls “The Great PC Reset”) was by far the best I’ve seen yet.
And although we have neither got the beloved Windows Phone back nor a Surface variantI’m excited that Microsoft is fully committed to Windows on Arm. We don’t have to wait long to get our hands on these great products either. Microsoft promises that they will be available as early as next month.
On the Windows side, Microsoft is bringing a wealth of next-gen AI features to Windows 11 in June, including Recall, Live Captions, Windows Studio effects, and more. However, not everyone will have access to these sophisticated features. This is because they require a device with a neural processing unit (NPU) that can output up to 40 TOPS of power. Essentially, you’ll need a Copilot+ PC to access them.
Is Windows 11’s recall feature evil?
There is no forecast as to when Microsoft plans to ship these new features to “traditional” Windows PCs as part of a new era of Windows PCs enhanced with AI. The Recall feature in particular caught my eye and is perhaps the most interesting feature shipping with Windows 11 next month. Our senior editor Zac Bowden put it simply:
“It’s a tool that runs in the background and can take snapshots of everything you see and do on your computer. This gives you the ability to search for everything you’ve ever done on your PC in natural language.”
Bowden’s report also describes that Recall will include a timeline feature at the top of the screen that will let you scroll back based on your search input. This is possible because the feature has access to your screen, spanning apps, web pages, images, and more. Think of it like Microsoft Photos’ scroll bar feature, which lets you scroll through photos taken years ago in seconds. The only difference is that Recall has access to more than just photos.
I know, what does this mean for your privacy and security? Microsoft has categorically stated that the feature 100% focused on data protection. Simply put, the company will not use any of the data retrieved from Recall to train its models.
This is because Recall runs NPU on the device, which essentially puts you in the driver’s seat with absolute control about how your data is handled. You can also prevent the feature from taking screenshots of certain apps or websites (stored locally on your PC). Users can also choose how long the screenshots should be stored and how much storage space is reserved for this feature. Finally, you can turn off the function if you don’t find it useful.
100% focused on privacy, but users remain concerned
Microsoft’s just-announced Recall is a neat and handy feature that could potentially revolutionize the way we interact with Windows PCs forever. It saves time and resources while promoting efficiency and effectiveness, which is one of the benefits of having access to AI anyway.
However, I have been quietly following user responses and reactions to the new feature. Right now, everything is kind of in the middle. No one is playing it safe or throwing caution to the wind and exploring the wild side of things where an AI-powered feature spies on everything you do on your PC.
User privacy and security are guaranteed – that is what history has taught us.
This is a Black Mirror episode. This “feature” should definitely be turned off. https://t.co/bx1KLqLf67May 20, 2024
In an interview with Joanna Stern of the Wall Street Journal, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella stated:
“One of our dreams has always been how we can incorporate memories. Right? Photographic memories into what you’re doing on your PC? And now we have it. It’s called Recall. It’s not a keyword search, it’s a semantic search of your entire history. And it’s not just any document. Essentially, it can restore moments from the past.”
Microsoft’s promise that the Recall feature is 100% privacy-focused is apparently being viewed with a grain of salt. Billionaire Elon Musk has openly expressed his reservations about the feature, comparing it to an episode of Black Mirror, and has bluntly hinted that he will disable the feature, which is enabled by default, once it ships.
Musk’s views are echoed loudly across social media platforms. For example, one user on the Reddit subreddit r/Windows 11 said it was time to switch from Windows to Linux after being an avid Windows user for 20 years.
I think I’m done. After 20 years of using Windows from r/Windows11
“This is ridiculous. What on earth are Microsoft executives thinking with this extreme spyware?
Imagine this: By 2025, the only PC people will be able to buy will be this Copliot+ nonsense. Most people won’t know about it or change their settings. And the security risk and attack surface of this thing is INSANE. And it won’t censor sensitive information? That’s every hacker, law enforcement agency, and oppressive government’s wet dream.
This is a damn disgrace.
I’ve been thinking about switching to Linux, but now I want to switch as soon as possible.”
Microsoft’s Recall feature is pretty impressive and I can’t wait to try it out. It will improve the way I interact with my PC – a no-brainer way to remember that in my long list of Microsoft Build 2024 embargo documents, Microsoft announced that WinUI 3 is the recommended native UI platform for Windows, alongside WPF. But the privacy and security concerns are valid, hopefully the on-device NPU will have a definite answer.