Microsoft began rolling out the first Windows Copilot preview on 29 June, bringing its AI sidebar to selected Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel. The build 23493 release note describes an early version focused on the assistant’s integration into Windows, with a small set of settings actions and no third-party plugin support yet.
Photo: efes, 2015. Original photograph via Wikimedia Commons. CC0 1.0. Recompressed; responsive crops. Company photograph from 2015, not the Copilot interface.
Following the May announcement, the preview makes the sidebar available to an initial group of testers. Access depends on three things: the Windows build, the Edge version and Microsoft’s staged rollout.
The right build doesn’t guarantee access
Microsoft specifies Windows 11 Insider Preview build 23493 or higher in the Dev Channel and Microsoft Edge version 115.0.1901.150 or higher. It says the experience isn’t available to every Dev Channel participant at the start of the rollout.
The channel matters as much as the build number. Microsoft’s March Insider roadmap assigns 23000-series builds to Dev and 25000-series builds to Canary. It also explains that features can be enabled in one channel while remaining disabled in another. A higher Canary build number therefore doesn’t establish access to this Dev Channel preview.
For testers already on Canary, moving to a channel with a lower build number requires a clean installation of Windows 11, according to that roadmap. Dev builds themselves aren’t tied to a particular future Windows release: their features can change or never reach general availability.
What the first sidebar can do
The taskbar button or Windows+C opens Copilot in a panel docked to the right of the screen, alongside existing app windows. It uses the Microsoft account or Azure Active Directory account already used to sign in to Windows.
Microsoft’s examples include switching to dark mode, enabling Do Not Disturb and taking a screenshot. The assistant can also summarize the active tab in Microsoft Edge, write a story or generate an image. Those are the company’s listed capabilities; this report doesn’t independently test them.
The release contains basic Windows settings plugins. Third-party plugins remain forthcoming, and Microsoft explicitly says the first preview doesn’t include everything shown at Build. It also plans to expand access to other Insider channels and add policies for IT administrators to manage the experience in their organizations.
That separates this first release’s available actions from the broader app integration still to come. The supported web-summary example concerns the active Edge tab, rather than a promise that Copilot can already read or operate every open application.
Early integration details
Microsoft says Bing Chat responses may include inline advertising recommendations. It also lists two Copilot interaction issues: Alt+Tab can move focus out of the sidebar but won’t return it, while Windows+C restores focus. People using voice access may initially need the Show grid command to select the input box after launching or refreshing Copilot.
The initial release therefore offers a specific set of Windows actions and chat features within a limited Insider rollout. Its release note leaves broader plugin support and organizational management policies for later previews.
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