Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7523 (Dev and Beta Channels) released
Microsoft has rolled out the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build (26220.7523) to Windows Insiders participating in the dev and beta channels. This update introduces new features and enhancements aimed at improving productivity and user experience.
One big development is something called Ask Copilot on the taskbar. Microsoft first hinted at this feature back in October when they previewed it for regular users, but the focus here seems to be expanding it through the new commercial offering, Microsoft 365 Copilot (as part of an opt-in program). It brings that familiar AI assistant feeling directly onto your main desktop area.
This capability lets you chat with Copilot via text or even voice, right from the taskbar. Think of it as a shortcut bar for productivity tools and finding files. Plus, there's this new 'tools' button specifically for invoking Copilot agents without switching focus elsewhere. It sits alongside Windows Search, so if you're used to that, nothing changes; you can still use it normally while exploring these AI features in the preview.
Elsewhere on the taskbar, Microsoft is testing the agents themselves. These are designed to help you track tasks like a quick researcher query, all without interrupting what you're doing elsewhere on your screen. You can just hover over the Copilot or Researcher icon for real-time updates on progress and get a notification when it's done.
They're also looking at how these agents integrate visually. Different design approaches are being experimented with to see which works best; sometimes they might group closely with Copilot, other times they appear separately as their own 'Researcher' icon in the taskbar area.
Then there's Agent Launchers: a bit of developer infrastructure letting Windows applications register AI agents so they're discoverable system-wide. This standard approach helps apps offer interactive AI features that can be triggered consistently by Windows itself and potentially other programs too, making setup easier for creators.
Accessibility improvements are another highlight. Narrator, the screen reader, now offers more flexibility with how much detail it shares about UI elements. Users have the ability to choose the order in which to speak information, tailoring it to their personal preferences.
And German isn't the only new language added; Microsoft is also rolling out Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, Hindi, Italian, and Chinese (Simplified) support for Copilot's taskbar features in this update. That makes it more broadly usable right from the start.
On the reliability front, Windows 11 testers are seeing fixes too; things like issues with the taskbar itself or File Explorer have been addressed alongside tweaks to login screens and graphics performance during sign-in. These updates aim to smooth out the system overall for smoother Insider Preview testing.
Microsoft is clearly keeping a close watch on how these features play out in real-world use. Feedback Hub (pressing WIN+F) remains their go-to channel for Insiders to report issues or suggest improvements directly as they test this build and its new capabilities.
Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7523 (Dev & Beta Channels)
Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7523 (KB5072043) to the Dev & Beta Channels.
Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7523 (Dev & Beta Channels)
