According to Neowin , Copilot is being marketed by Microsoft not only as a Cortana-like digital assistant but also as "the entry point to the world of AI on PCs," as CEO Satya Nadella recently introduced. However, PC manufacturers seem to be coming up with new ideas on how to use general AI like Copilot in future Windows PCs, with Dell being one of them.

A recent demo from Dell showed how something similar to Copilot could make it easier to change settings on a PC. The demo included Windows 11 models running the same advanced features as Copilot. Gizmodo reports that Dell showed how to set up a Copilot icon on the Windows 11 taskbar. Clicking the icon would allow users to type or speak a prompt. These prompts could be used to ask Copilot to show trackball brightness controls or see which graphics driver versions are installed, rather than having to dig through a bunch of menus and settings options to find them on the PC.

In another Windows 11 simulation demo, Dell showed how Copilot can automatically set Wi-Fi security settings when a user tries to log in to a public Wi-Fi router. Users can type or speak into Copilot and ask it to run the PC at the fastest possible performance settings. The command is then carried out by Microsoft's virtual assistant without the user having to make any manual changes.

It’s important to note that Dell’s Windows 11 demo doesn’t mean Microsoft is actively working to expand Copilot in these ways. It’s simply a possible look at what the virtual assistant could do in future versions of Windows. But the fact that Dell created the models suggests that at least one major PC maker has some ideas about where this AI feature could be exploited, and Microsoft may see it as an idea for expanding Copilot’s use in 2024.