It might not get the same kind of attention as Google and Apple, but Microsoft is still one of the biggest and most powerful tech companies operating today. It runs Azure, one of the biggest cloud computing services, and maintains Windows 11 and the whole Office suite of software. It also makes plenty of Surface hardware and has a whole slew of gaming products, including the Xbox Series X. But the company is ever expanding — building new hardware, acquiring new game studios, and making sure that even if Microsoft doesn’t run your phone, it can touch plenty of the apps on it.
After launching on Mac, Codex’s computer use feature is headed to Windows, which means the app can “see” your screen and perform tasks on your device. OpenAI says you can also manage and review Codex’s jobs while away from the computer using the ChatGPT app.
[X (formerly Twitter)]
The app will combine GitHub Copilot, the Copilot chatbot, Copilot Cowork, and a “new agentic workflow capability internally named Autopilot” into one place, Fortune reports. Sounds like a Microsoft version of something like OpenAI’s “super app” ambitions.
Perhaps it will be shown off at Microsoft Build next week?
Copilot Health, first announced in March, is now open to Microsoft 365 subscribers. Microsoft says they can use it to find doctors and get insights on data from connected medical records, wearables, and other apps like Apple Health, similar to health AI models from OpenAI and Anthropic.
[Microsoft Copilot Blog]
It’s available for users in the Experimental Windows Insider channel. Microsoft says you can pick from six preset options or a custom color.
The new ChatGPT integration for Microsoft PowerPoint, like an earlier add-on for Excel and Google Sheets, adds a sidebar where users can create or edit presentations using chatbot prompts along with documents, images, and other source material.
The feature is available now in beta for ChatGPT users with Business, Enterprise, Edu, Teacher, K-12, Free, Go, Pro, and Plus plans.
Apparently, that SpaceX $15 billion per year megadeal isn’t even enough capacity for Claude, as The Information reports Anthropic is in early talks to rent Azure servers with Microsoft’s chips, and that “Anthropic has been steadily increasing its Azure usage.”
Like OpenAI, Microsoft’s arrangement with Anthropic runs hot and cold, but its Maia 200 chips are designed to help run existing models like Claude, even if they aren’t as fast at helping to train new ones.
[The Information]
The company traced the incident to a “poisoned” VS Code extension on an employee’s device. While the hacking group TeamPCP has claimed responsibility for the breach, GitHub says it has since removed the malicious extension and that the exfiltration was limited to internal data, as reported by Bleeping Computer.
[BleepingComputer]
Logitech has announced its vibrating MX Master 4 mouse that debuted last September now natively supports Windows 11’s Advanced Haptics. A new firmware update now available adds haptic feedback effects to mundane actions like snapping windows during a resize and aligning PowerPoint objects, with additional effects being rolled out in the coming months.
Public opinion of the AI industry is already sinking. A parade of untrustworthy executives makes it look worse.
I enjoyed reading this story about Bill Gates’ malevolent influence on the current crop of Silicon Valley megalomaniacs. If you remember his pre-Gates Foundation reputation, you will particularly appreciate it.
[The New York Review of Books]
The latest open-world racer is a stunning virtual road trip through Japan, and it’s perfect for explorers.
New Xbox boss Asha Sharma is asking fans whether it should be Xbox or XBOX, when the real answer is right there, if only she could see it.
Chris K.:
Give it the gamertag treatment: xXxBOxXx
Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily.
On Wednesday, the AISI, which evaluates AI models for the British government, said both Anthropic’s Claude Mythos Preview and OpenAI’s GPT-5.5 showed progress well above previous trends on cybersecurity testing. Separately, XBOW released data suggesting “frontier models have taken a major step forward in vulnerability discovery.”
Meanwhile, Microsoft said its multi-model agentic setup, MDASH, was used to discover 16 CVEs in this week’s Patch Tuesday updates and is the leader on the CyberGym security evaluation framework.
Microsoft is reportedly cutting around five percent of its LinkedIn headcount this week, approximately 875 roles. Reuters reports that Microsoft-owned LinkedIn will inform staff of the cuts today. Microsoft confirmed the layoffs in a statement to Seeking Alpha. “As part of our regular business planning, we’ve implemented organizational changes to best position ourselves for future success,” said an unnamed LinkedIn spokesperson.
