Microsoft is halting forced installs of Microsoft 365 Copilot app
Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- PCWorld reports that Microsoft has stopped automatically installing Microsoft 365 Copilot on Windows 11 following significant user backlash against forced AI integration.
- The move addresses privacy concerns after a previous Copilot bug allowed unauthorized access to confidential Outlook emails.
- Administrators can still manually deploy the AI Assistant, while existing installations are not affected by this policy change.
Since October, the Microsoft 365 Copilot app has been automatically installed on computers running Windows 11, a move that has upset many users. Fortunately, Microsoft has taken the criticism into account and no longer automatically installs this app, for now.
Microsoft 365 Copilot is the enhanced version of Copilot integrated into Office applications such as Word, Excel and Outlook. A Microsoft 365 Copilot license unlocks access to advanced agents such as researcher and analyst, as well as full access to Copilot Studio features.
Unfortunately for Microsoft, users have long been unhappy with Copilot’s takeover of Microsoft 365. Not only does it feel like “AI” is being imposed on us at every corner, but “AI” itself is problematic. For example, last month a Copilot bug allowed the “AI” assistant to bypass privacy blocks and read confidential Outlook emails.
Existing Copilot installations are not affected by this decision. Administrators can deploy the application via other methods and should wait for further updates, Microsoft writes in a statement cited by Windows Latest.
Just a few days ago, we reported that Microsoft was rethinking its big AI push in Windows 11, which is likely related to the increasingly fierce backlash directed at the company over Copilot. This may be just one of many steps in its move away from AI obsession.
Further reading: Microsoft bans users who use the term “Microslop”
This article was originally published on our sister publication PC för Alla and has been translated and localized from Swedish.
