Microsoft’s biggest update for 2024 will be Windows 11 24H2, we’ve heard again, but it’ll be a big old drop of multiple features – plus fundamental changes – expected to arrive in September.
That’s the latest from Microsoft rumor maker Zac Bowden Windows Central fame, a generally reliable source for all things Windows.
Bowden has previously claimed that Microsoft will keep Windows 11 and release a 24H2 upgrade later this year – rather than launching Windows 12, or whatever a brand new version of the operating system is called – so this concept is nothing new.
It’s also fully expected that the update will be heavily focused on next-gen AI experiences (for those AI PCs that Microsoft keeps harping on about), and we’re told by Bowden that the 2024 update will be a much bigger affair then the 23H2 (which was quite small, so again, that’s no surprise).
However, according to Bowden, 24H2 will mark a seriously major change of direction and will be built on a new version of the Windows platform that will usher in several performance and security updates in addition to a range of new features.
What new features? Well, given the mentioned weight on the AI side of the equation, there will obviously be upgrades to Copilot. We’re told the desktop assistant will improve the Windows interface and find ways to boost productivity across apps, search, and more.
Bowden won’t go into any real details that haven’t been mentioned before, but in short, Copilot will help you do more things in a faster and easier way in Windows, as well as all the existing Bing Chat style. AI has.
However, the leak goes further on one point: that Microsoft is planning a Copilot timeline/history feature that will allow users to locate any file, image, app, basically anything previously opened on their PC using the AI. In other words, a history-based super search that will likely let you do things like request “that file where I wrote about Nvidia’s new RTX Super graphics cards” or similar, more natural language-based requests than traditional search. (We’ve heard rumors along these lines before).
We’ve already seen other incoming features in test builds of Windows 11, like the new ‘power saving’ capability and AI-powered Snap Layouts to pick out a few examples.
All the things you see in early channel testing are likely for 24H2, and there are other additions to come as well. For example, the improvements to Phone Link are incoming, including the ability to use your smartphone as a makeshift webcam for the PC (pretty handy).
Analysis: Possible twists in the story
Some still believe this will be Windows 12, or an incarnation of the next generation of Windows (Windows AI?) rather than just a 24H2 update for Windows 11. That would make sense in some ways, since this is Windows that is built on a brand new platform (called Germanium) and it’s something big besides the AI PCs we keep hearing about.
However, Bowden thinks a complete name change is unlikely, and continues to insist this will be the 24H2 update, even if it brings extensive changes.
One reason Microsoft may not want Windows 12 is that it would split the user base into Windows 10, 11, and 12, which could be confusing for users and a problem for Microsoft when it comes to development and patching. Remember, Windows 10 isn’t dead anymore, and Microsoft recently reversed the decision to freeze new features for the older operating system, and is now rolling out new functionality – including, most importantly, Copilot.
This is all just speculation, mind you, and even Microsoft itself may not have made the final decision on whether this will be another update to Windows 11, or an entirely new next-generation Windows.
Bowden explains the development timeframe and as mentioned, the expected release for the theoretical 24H2 update is currently September (although this could be later in the year).
There’s a little twist, though: the platform it’s built on, Germanium, will apparently be ready in April, after which work on finalizing the Windows 11 2024 Update will begin. It’s possible that new AI PCs with 24H2 on board will appear as early as July, but the upgrade won’t come to existing Windows 11 installations until September at the earliest.