As Windows turns 40, Microsoft faces an AI backlash
TL;DR
Microsoft's AI overhaul in Windows 11 is drawing comparisons to the divisive Windows 8 redesign, which alienated users by removing familiar features. This shift risks repeating past mistakes as the company pushes for an AI-driven future.
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It feels like Microsoft is blindly racing toward another Windows 8 situation. Windows 8 was arguably the most divisive release of Windows in its 40-year history, as Microsoft attempted to overhaul the operating system for a touch-first future. Spooked by the iPad, the company shipped a radical overhaul that ditched the familiar Start menu and left users frustrated and confused. They weren't quite ready for the future that Microsoft envisioned.
As I look at Windows 11 today, on the 40th anniversary of the operating system's release, its ongoing AI overhaul is starting to feel similar to that controversial redesign.
Microsoft detailed its v …