Previous speculation that Microsoft was abandoning the three-year update cycle for Windows turned out to be true. In an official blog post, Microsoft announced that “Windows 11 24H2” will be a major feature update for 2024, pushing the expected release of Windows 12 to 2025 or later.
Microsoft quietly discovered this policy change in the changelog of a recent Windows 11 Insider preview build. The changelog states: “Starting with the release of Build 26-xx today, Windows Insiders in the Canary and Developer channels will see version updates to version 24H2 under Settings > System > About (and the winner). This is ‘Windows 11 version 24H2’ “This means that Windows 11 will have an annual feature update this year. As stated here, Windows 11 will have an annual feature update frequency released in the second half of the calendar year.”
The company is now clearly committed to releasing an annual feature update for Windows 11, scheduled for release in the second half of each year. This marks a change from the smaller, more frequent Moments updates seen in the past.
This decision may be due to Microsoft’s concern about the increasing fragmentation of its user base. Windows 10 continues to hold a market share of 66%, with Windows 11 following at 28%. The launch of Windows 12 in 2024 could further divide the Windows ecosystem, a situation that Microsoft wants to avoid.
Instead, users can expect significant AI features and other improvements with the Windows 11 24H2 update. The exact details of what these AI features will be are still unknown, but we can expect more details to emerge in the coming months.
However, previously discussed concepts, such as the redesigned desktop interface with a “floating taskbar” as a feature of Windows 12, will not come to fruition in the near future. So a major visual update to Windows is unlikely to happen before 2025.
In terms of release dates, Windows 11 24H2 builds will reach manufacturers (RTM) in April 2024. Public availability is tentatively expected to occur between September and October 2024.