Microsoft continues to find a use for artificial intelligence that everyone will use. The latest Copilot feature for Windows 11 is something called PC Insights, which will… give you insight into what your PC is doing. According to a report from Windows Latest, the feature is out in parts of the US. It’s currently rolling out more broadly.
It’s supposed to tell you all manner of information about the machine you’re working on, from RAM usage details to troubleshooting. It’ll also, according to the report, use 1GB of RAM while it’s running, whether you’re using it or not. Ironic.
Who needs a Copilot?
The upcoming Copilot feature will grant Microsoft’s AI greater access to a computer’s hardware than it usually has. It’ll cover everything from CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage usage, network and wireless connectivity functions, or even USB devices. Microsoft’s AI technically doesn’t have access to any specific files on a PC, but users can permit access to these files and folders.
After that, users can ask questions about a computer. Examples given include whether there’s enough space to install an app or game, what may be slowing a computer down, or for assistance in fixing a problem with the computer environment. Exactly how useful this is remains to be seen.
PC Insights, unlike other changes coming to Windows, isn’t for everyone. The sort of users who might need to ask specific questions about RAM or CPU usage are the same users who already know the answers to these questions. Technically, yes, a first-time computer user can ask Copilot why a computer seems slow. The AI will certainly return a result.
Executing a fix… could have varying results. The history of Windows is littered with computer systems destroyed by people who didn’t know what they were doing. Many of these were wrecked in the presence of easy-to-follow directions that were just never followed. Right now, the PC Insights feature won’t suggest possible solutions, presumably for this reason. In other words, likely users are people who already know how to identify a GPU or perform simple math while calculating storage capacity. It sounds like another AI-based feature that doesn’t have to be there.
