New laptops with Microsoft Windows are starting to ship to customers next week, but they won’t have a key feature called Recall that raised concerns about privacy and cybersecurity.
Last month, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella promoted the new Recall feature at a showcase event. He described it as a step toward artificial intelligence machines that “instantly see us, hear, reason about our intent and our surroundings.”
Recall works by taking snapshots of a computer screen from time to time. This gives Microsoft’s AI assistant, Copilot, a “photographic memory” of a person’s virtual activity, supposedly to help someone remember what they did earlier.
“We’re entering this new era where computers not only understand us, but can actually anticipate what we want and our intent,” Nadella said in May.
However, on Thursday, the company said it was delaying a “broadly available” preview of Recall that was supposed to be included with new PCs starting Tuesday.
Instead, it will first go to a smaller group of users who are part of the Windows Insider software testing program. These expert early adopters will help “ensure the experience meets our high standards for quality and security,” said Pavan Davaluri, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of Windows and devices, in a statement.
The software giant showed off a new class of AI-powered personal computers at its annual Build event last month. This comes as Microsoft faces increased competition from Big Tech rivals in promoting generative AI technology. This technology can write documents, create images, and act as a lifelike personal assistant at work or home.
The new AI features in Microsoft’s Windows 11 operating system will show up on new high-end computers made by Microsoft partners Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Samsung, as well as on Microsoft’s own Surface line of devices.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.