Microsoft is already developing Windows 12 and recent additions for cloud PC on Windows 11 may point towards the company accelerating development. Microsoft is working on Settings app changes that are available for some Insiders, such as a dedicated USB4 page.
Elsewhere, Microsoft is also adding a way to switch to Cloud PC directly on Windows. Users can access the Cloud PC via App windows or through Task View. It is also possible to add accessories through ports.
This change is available through Windows Insider build 23419 through the “settingshandlers_cloudpc” DLL file. These are important changes because Microsoft has been clear that Cloud PC will play a big roll in Windows 12.
So, it seems Microsoft is now laying public foundations for the next generation of its operating system.
Cloud PC settings now have extra toggles for what kind of resources you'd like to share with it pic.twitter.com/eOgKitNAzi
— Albacore (@thebookisclosed) March 22, 2023
Windows 12 could arrive as soon as 2025 as Microsoft looks to faster turnarounds of Windows generations. There may be a temptation within the company to launch Windows 12 even quicker than that.
AI Support
In recent months the company has gone all in on AI across its services. Whether it is the Microsoft 365 Copilot for Office apps, Azure OpenAI Service for the cloud, GitHub Copilot X for programming, and Bing Chat with Bing Image Creator. Each of these was born through Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI by leveraging ChatGPT and GPT-4.
Microsoft has made it clear it wants Windows 12 to lean into AI in a major way. The company is laying that groundwork in Windows 11, including making Bing Chat available in the taskbar. It is reasonable to speculate Microsoft may want its AI integrations in Windows to be a major selling point of Windows 12.
However, the AI space is moving very quickly at the moment and Microsoft cannot wait until even next year to save AI features for Windows. So, could Windows 12 feasibly launch in 2023?
Tip of the day: Though many VPN providers have their own apps, you can in many cases connect to a VPN in Windows without any third-party software. This is ideal if you have a self-hosted VPN or if you’re using a PC with restricted permissions. In our tutorial, we’re showing you how to connect to a VPN in Windows.
