Microsoft is ending support for Cortana in Windows. In a support page spotted by XDA Developers and Windows Central, the company says it will “no longer support Cortana in Windows as a standalone app” starting later this year.
Cortana’s discontinuation on Windows doesn’t come as much of a surprise. During its Build conference in May, Microsoft announced its new Windows Copilot tool, which will live in your taskbar and use AI to help you do everything — and more — that Cortana does once it’s widely released. That includes summarizing content, rewriting text, asking questions, adjusting your computer’s settings, and more.
Microsoft first brought Cortana to Windows 10 in 2015, allowing you to set reminders, open applications, and ask questions using voice commands. Over the years, though, Microsoft has been gradually phasing Cortana out of the Windows experience. The digital assistant lost its prominent position on the user’s taskbar with the release of Windows 11 and no longer appeared in the first boot experience. Microsoft also shut down the Cortana app on iOS and Android in 2020 and ended support for Cortana in its Surface headphones and other devices.
It’s not clear when exactly Microsoft will remove Cortana from Windows. But it is clear that Microsoft’s growing suite of AI tools, which also includes its Bing chatbot and Microsoft 365 Copilot, is taking first priority. Even though Cortana is going away in Windows, Microsoft says it will still be available in Outlook mobile, Microsoft Teams mobile, Teams display, and Teams rooms, but who knows for how long.
