Windows 12 Rumours Surface, But Don't Believe Them
I hope you're ready for more pushy AI features.
A new report has suggested that Microsoft is readying up to announce and release Windows 12 later this year, but there's a high chance it might be wrong.
As extended support for Windows 10 dies later this year, and Windows 11 users are inundated with various problems, new Windows 12 rumours have swept the internet today.
The report coming from PCWorld suggests that “leaks, internal project references, and statements from hardware partners are increasingly pointing to the imminent release of a new generation of Windows.”
According to the report, Windows 12 will “not treat AI as an add-on feature, but will anchor it as a fundamental part of the system”. This means making Copilot mandatory to use rather than an optional assistant, and integrating other AI features widely across the operating system.
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This means including AI in features like “context-dependent task recommendations, real-time summaries, automatic content generation, intelligent document categorization, and semantic search”.
Meanwhile, PCWorld’s report also mentions that an NPU will be required as a baseline for installing Windows 12.
For those who don’t know what that means, it stands for Neural Processing Unit and essentially accelerates AI and machine learning processes on your PC.
Those without an NPU will apparently be able to upgrade, but won’t have access to certain AI features and may not get the full upgrade.
It Appears That This Might Be Fake News
As reported by Windows Central, it looks like the report from PCWorld may have been a hallucination created by AI.
"According to contacts that are familiar with the Windows roadmap, there is no plan to ship a Windows 12 this year," Windows Central's Zac Bowden reports. "In fact, I understand that the Windows roadmap for 2026 is all about fixing Windows 11 and attempting to improve its reputation by addressing top feedback such as reducing AI bloat across the OS, bringing back the movable Taskbar, and more."
"It seems to me that this report is either AI generated or AI researched, and has been published without much fact checking. It shows all the obvious signs of an AI that has confused old reports and online conversations as current and factual, when much of it isn't anymore."
So, if you see these rumours floating around in the next few days, I wouldn't try and pay too much attention to them. It seems that it might just be a case of fake news.
Microsoft Has Seen Lots Of Backlash For Its Implementation Of AI Features In Windows 11
Although various tech companies have quietly adopted AI and LLM technology in recent years, many consumers have pushed back on the technology due to its frequent hallucinations, forced integration, and ethical issues associated with the data it’s trained on.
Microsoft in particular has received a lot of backlash for its usage and implementation of AI in Windows 11.
Copilot is unpopular due to how intrusive it’s been in recent months, with the company cramming it into as many of its tools as possible.
When it comes to operating systems, users want to install the apps they want and leave everything else out. So, a constant reminder that Copilot exists, when nobody really seems to want it, is just going to cause backlash.
For gaming in particular, this push on AI sounds like it would be problematic. Gamers in general are already leading the pushback against AI, considering the backlash to various studios attempting to use generative AI in development, so something tells me an AI-powered operating system is not something they’re going to take without a fight.
Considering Microsoft recently had to ban “Microslop” as a term on its Copilot Discord server, I’m willing to bet the backlash will only increase, rather than decrease.