Windows 11 File Explorer Gets AI Shortcuts

Microsoft is integrating AI shortcuts, called AI actions, into Windows 11's File Explorer. These allow right-clicking a file to access Windows AI features like blurring photo backgrounds, erasing objects, or summarizing Office files. Four image actions are currently being tested, including Bing visual search, background blur and object removal (from the Photos app), and background removal in Paint. Similar AI actions for Office files are planned, enabling summarization of OneDrive/SharePoint documents and AI-generated lists. This will initially be for Microsoft 365 commercial subscribers with Copilot; consumer support is coming later. Alongside this, Windows 11 widgets are getting a visual refresh with Copilot-curated stories. A new "User Interaction-Aware CPU Power Management" feature aims to reduce power consumption on inactive laptops and tablets.