feature or bug? you decide. Windows 11 updates are accidentally getting rid of Copilot, at least for now Copilot can be reinstalled from the Microsoft Store if it's something you want. Andrew Cunningham Mar 17, 2025 1:56 pm | 23 The Copilot button on a Surface Pro keyboard cover. Credit: Andrew Cunningham The Copilot button on a Surface Pro keyboard cover. Credit: Andrew Cunningham Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreMicrosoft's Windows updates over the last couple of years have mostly been focused on adding generative AI features to the operating system, including multiple versions of the Copilot assistant. Copilot has made it into Windows 11 (and even, to a more limited extent, the aging Windows 10) as a native app, and then a wrapper around a web app, and soon as a native app again.But this month's Windows updates are removing the Copilot app from some Windows 11 PCs and unpinning it from the taskbar, according to this Microsoft support document. This bug obviously won't affect systems where Copilot had already been uninstalled, but it has already led to confusion among some Windows users.Microsoft says it is "working on a resolution to address the issue" but that users who want to get Copilot back can reinstall the app from the Microsoft Store and repin it to the taskbar, the same process you use to install Copilot on PCs where it has been removed.Though some version of Copilot has been included in fresh Windows 11 installs since mid-2023, and Microsoft even added a Copilot key into the standard Windows keyboard in early 2024, Copilot's appearance and capabilities have shifted multiple times since then.The initial version could do typical chatbot things like have "conversations" and attempt to answer questions, but could also be used as a shortcut to perform certain tasks or change Windows settingsswitching between dark and light mode, taking screenshots, and toggling Do Not Disturb are all listed among Copilot's capabilities in Microsoft's original blog post announcing Copilot but are not supported in the current version of the app. (Recently, I had the bizarre experience of standing in a Best Buy, watching a promotional sizzle reel for Copilot playing on one of their display PCsthe problem was that the video was advertising capabilities that Copilot no longer had, using a version of the app that no longer exists.)While the next version of the Copilot app that Microsoft is testing is once again a native app rather than a web app, it still doesn't appear to integrate with Windows as deeply as that initial version did. Microsoft's screenshots of the app show it giving directions for switching on dark mode rather than allowing users to toggle it automatically from within Copilot as they could originally. This app is rolling out to testers in the Windows Insider program.Andrew CunninghamSenior Technology ReporterAndrew CunninghamSenior Technology Reporter Andrew is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica, with a focus on consumer tech including computer hardware and in-depth reviews of operating systems like Windows and macOS. Andrew lives in Philadelphia and co-hosts a weekly book podcast called Overdue. 23 Comments