It's no secret that I'm not a big fan of Microsoft's Copilot, the AI assistant that has permeated almost all of the company's products over the past several months. My focus is on Windows, and the current implementation of Copilot there is next to useless. That said, I do think it has potential, especially if it's implemented properly so that it lives in Windows more discreetly.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently likened Copilot to the Start menu and how it could be the next stage in how users interact with Windows. Microsoft has gone even further and just recently announced it's adding a Copilot button to Windows 11 laptops. At first glance, I thought this was ridiculous, but the more I think about it, the more it seems like a decent decision — so long as Microsoft puts in the work in four key areas. In fact, I'd say it could make the best laptops even better if done right.

4 Replace Windows Search

The logical place for Copilot to live in

One thing I've recently realized is that the primary way I interact with my PC is by using the keyboard. It's easier for me to type the app I want to open or search for a document (usually) than it is to browse my computer for them. Programs like Start11 definitely improve discoverability for apps, but sometimes, typing is just a faster way to find what I'm looking for, so I just end up opening the Start menu and typing in what I want.

Copilot could definitely play into this by becoming the way to get things done on your PC. It should live inside Windows Search rather than be a separate experience. I should be able to open Search and still have the power of Copilot at my fingertips, so I can launch an app or open a document. But I should also be able to change system settings, all with a keyboard and using natural language.

Copilot can then leverage its language comprehension skills even further. Say you have multiple files with the same name under different folders. In the search bar, you could now say, "Open this file in this folder," and it would just open the right one. It should even understand things like dates, so you can always get to the files you want without moving your hands away from your keyboard.

Reports about Windows 12 already talk about an advanced Copilot that lives on every surface of the OS, and living inside the search engine is the logical first step for that. However, Copilot currently feels very shoehorned into Windows. AI doesn't need to be seen and shouldn't be. It should just work for you.

3 Make it more powerful

Deeper integrations could remove the need for the Start menu

Having Copilot live in Windows Search with its enhanced language capabilities is a fantastic starting point, but if it wants to truly replace the Start menu, it needs to do more. It needs to replace everything you might do that starts in the Start menu and even other areas of Windows.

The biggest example is, of course, system integration. Microsoft basically teased this with the initial implementation of Copilot, which can do things like enable dark mode or start a focus session, but that's about it. First and foremost, Microsoft needs to make Copilot understand all kinds of changes you want to make to your PC. Allow me to change the theme color, start a timer, turn on Bluetooth — all of that. If Copilot can do that, even the Settings app can become more redundant.

But let's go even further. If the keyboard is already your primary input method, there's a good chance you're already using Windows Terminal for many things, too. That can include, for example, installing apps using the winget command. You could bypass launching Terminal and typing winget — just open Copilot and type install Telegram, and it will pull the app from the winget repository or the Microsoft Store.

And, of course, you can get even more complex when you get into more focused apps. Play a specific song on Spotify; open a conversation on Messenger; share a file with someone. All of this could contribute to Copilot becoming how everybody wants to interact with their PC.

2 Stop making me use my mouse

Have Copilot actually launch my apps without requiring input

The last big thing Microsoft needs to do is make Copilot actually boost your productivity. This could be a dream since so many users already favor using the keyboard to get things done, but that's not possible right now. You can currently ask Copilot to open the Settings app with a clear, straightforward command like open Settings. But after doing this, Copilot will simply ask you if you want to open the Settings app rather than just opening it.

What's more, the options in the dialog box shown aren't even automatically selected with the keyboard, so the fastest way to select an option is to move your mouse over and click one. And that's the case for basically everything Copilot can do, which means you'll be wasting more time than you could ever save by using the keyboard in the first place.

Copilot has the chops of one of the best large language models in the world, so it should be very easy to determine intent based on such a direct command. We don't need a confirmation step for everything we ask Copilot to do, especially not one that requires you to use my mouse anyway. When we ask Copilot to do something, it should just do it.

On that note, Copilot needs to be at least able to locate apps on my PC effectively. I tried asking Copilot to open Teams or Photoshop, and it just wouldn't do it. If Copilot can't provide results and take action as reliably as the Start menu, it can't be the replacement for it.

1 Let it become the terminal

Even the everyday user could use it

There's a big subset of users out there whose primary input method is the keyboard, and the reason for that is that it's faster. But how many non-tech people really use Linux or even the Windows Terminal? It's not intuitive to most people, but Copilot could change that.

If Copilot became the launchpad of Windows and replaced the Start menu, it would immediately get a lot of visibility, and if you combine that with its comprehension of natural language, it would be super intuitive to use. Not everybody knows how to open Windows Terminal and type winget, but anyone could open Copilot and ask it to install Telegram.

Copilot could bring together more advanced users and novice users to this one interface that does everything more quickly and naturally. Microsoft just needs to make it clear that's what this is: a way to do everything more quickly on your PC and one that's easy enough for everyone to use. It will take some time for everyone to get used to it, but it could really improve how we all get things done.

Microsoft still has a lot of work to do

Copilot is in no shape to replace the Start menu right now — there's no denying that. If Microsoft truly believes Copilot is at the heart of its strategy, it needs to be able to put in the work to improve it, and if it does, there's a lot of potential for Copilot to become something great. I'm looking forward to seeing what Copilot looks like in future versions of Windows and if it can actually change the paradigm of how we use our computers.