Microsoft is continuing its aggressive push to integrate its AI assistant into every corner of Windows 11, with the latest Insider Preview build introducing yet another Copilot button. The new feature, which appears when hovering over an app on the taskbar, allows users to instantly share a window's content with Copilot Vision for analysis.
While the feature offers a novel way to interact with on-screen content, its appearance has intensified the ongoing debate among users and tech commentators about whether the operating system is suffering from AI feature bloat.
How the New 'Share with Copilot' Button Works
The new function is being tested in the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview build for the Dev Channel. Here’s how it works:
- When a user mouses over an open application on the taskbar, the standard window preview appears.
- Alongside the usual options, a new "Share with Copilot" button is now present.
- Clicking this button sends a snapshot of the contents of that specific window to Copilot Vision, Microsoft's image analysis AI.
- The user can then chat with Copilot to ask questions about what is on the screen, such as identifying people in a photo, getting more information about a landmark, or even receiving a tutorial based on the application's interface.
Another Button in a Sea of AI Features
The primary criticism leveled against this new feature is not its functionality, but its necessity. Many users feel that Windows is becoming oversaturated with entry points for the AI assistant. This new taskbar button joins a long list of existing Copilot integrations, including:
This relentless integration has led many to question whether Microsoft is responding to genuine user demand or simply pushing its AI services wherever possible.
Will This Feature Make It to the Final Release?
It is important to note that this feature is still in the experimental phase. In its announcement, Microsoft stated that it is just "trying out this taskbar capability." This language suggests that the feature's inclusion in a final public build of Windows 11 is not guaranteed.
Features introduced in Insider Preview builds are often subject to change or complete removal based on feedback from the tester community. Interestingly, the same preview build also introduced a more positively received Copilot feature that allows for on-screen text translation, indicating that not all of the new AI integrations are being met with skepticism. The ultimate fate of the "Share with Copilot" button will likely depend on how testers respond to it in the coming weeks.
