Microsoft has delivered on its promise by adding Windows Copilot AI assistant support and other features to Windows 11. The new Windows Insider Dev Channel build (23493) includes both early access to AI Assistant and support for RAR and 7-Zip archives, as well as a new settings page and an improved Volume Mixer tool for adjusting sound settings.

Microsoft first announced Windows Copilot earlier this year. For first-timers, the assistant is available in Windows 11 in the right sidebar. The company promises that the panel will not overlap with business content and will run in parallel with open applications without interfering with the business process, which will allow you to turn to AI for assistance at any time. The AI-powered Windows Copilot can be asked questions that Bing Chat would normally answer, and can even execute certain system commands.

Windows Copilot can also be used to annotate text and create images and text, just like the Bing sidebar in Microsoft Edge. All things considered, relevant ads will be shown in parallel. Since it’s an early release, Windows Copilot isn’t a fully functional solution, so it can only control some basic Windows settings and still has no support for third-party plugins.

Windows 11 came out and integrated support for RAR, 7-Zip, tar, gz and many other archive file types. At the same time, the company warns that performance issues that will be fixed in subsequent Windows Insider releases are still not ruled out. General support for archives in Windows 11 will roll out in September, as Microsoft announced at its developer Bild event. In addition, the provision of not only opening, but also creation of such files – is planned only in 2024.

Another new feature is an improved volume control interface in “quick settings”. For example, you can optimize the sound for each program separately, it is possible to quickly switch devices, and the WIN + CTRL + V key combination has also appeared, which allows you to call the mixer without going into the settings.

Even in Windows 11, an updated settings page has now appeared with a brief summary of the devices used along with the main important settings. The page will contain up to seven cards with information on which you can quickly check Bluetooth devices, quickly set the wallpaper and check your OneDrive storage, including information about your Microsoft 365 or Xbox subscriptions. These are far from all the functionality of the new version of Windows – first testers may be familiar with the full list. It is worth noting that the same Bing Chat does not work in Edge without a VPN in Russia, so it is possible that Windows 11 users in the country will also experience problems even after the release of a stable version.