Microsoft is rolling out its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered Recall feature with the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview update, the company has announced. The feature first debuted at the Microsoft Surface and AI event in May but its initial version faced criticism due to privacy and security concerns. and hence, its rollout to Windows Insiders testers was halted. It works on Microsoft’s new lineup of Copilot+ PCs running Windows 11 and captures user activity via screenshots, enabling them to carry out searches at a later date.

Microsoft Recall Rolls Out

The Recall feature was initially reported to be rolled out to Windows Insiders in October but was delayed. In a subsequent development, Microsoft’s Senior Product Manager Brandon LeBlanc confirmed to The Verge that it would only roll out to Windows Insiders program members by December.

In a blog post, Microsoft says that Recall is being rolled out with the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.2415 (KB5046723) to the Dev Channel. Users registered with Microsoft’s Windows Insider Program can join the channel and take advantage of this feature on their Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs. In the Preview phase, it supports Chinese (simplified), English, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish languages. Microsoft adds that it will roll out support for AMD and Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs in the future.

What is Recall?

As per the company, the Recall feature uses snapshots of the user’s screen to create a photographic memory. It includes documents, emails, images, and websites visited on the PC. Once done, users can describe what they’re searching for via text-based prompts and Recall will provide the related results. Alternatively, they can scroll through their timeline to see snapshots from a specific time period. Microsoft says this feature leverages AI to provide both text and visual matches for the query.

This feature requires an opt-in permission to save snapshots and enrol in Windows Hello, leveraging BitLocker and Secure Boot. Microsoft says Recall will not save any snapshots of the activity if users do not opt-in. A new icon is said to be displayed in the system tray as a visual cue when Recall takes snapshots of the screen. It also gives quick access to controls such as pausing the feature or viewing more information.

Users also have control over what data is being saved, as per Microsoft. They can choose to manually erase snapshots or exclude an app or website from being snapped. The company emphasises that snapshots remain on-device and are not sent to Microsoft or third-party servers, or used for training AI models or any other features. Further, it claims that the Recall feature can detect when sensitive information — such as credit card details or passwords — is being displayed on the screen and does not store them as snapshots.

Microsoft says Recall is removed by default on Enterprise versions of Windows 11 as well as PCs managed for work or school by an IT administrator.

Microsoft Recall — the company’s upcoming feature for Copilot+ PCs — is facing yet another delay. The Redmond company was expected to roll out its Recall feature to Windows Insiders last month. However, it is unlikely to be available for another couple of months, according to the company. The feature is designed to run on Windows 11 Copilot+ PCs and captures screenshots of user activity, and it has faced a lot of criticism since it was first announced, due to privacy and security concerns.

Senior Product Manager Brandon LeBlanc confirmed to The Verge that the Recall feature will only roll out to Windows Insiders program members by December. “To ensure we deliver on these important updates, we’re taking additional time to refine the experience before previewing it with Windows Insiders,” the executive told the publication.

What is Microsoft’s Recall Feature?

Originally announced in May, the new Recall feature is an AI feature designed to run only on Copilot+ PCs. It can help users find things on their computer by taking screenshots of all their activities and allowing them to search the contents of that screenshot at a later date. The announcement of the feature was met with intense criticism from privacy advocates and security experts, who pointed out several flaws with the initial version of Recall.

After the backlash, Microsoft halted its plans to roll out Recall to Windows Insiders testers in June and revealed that it would arrive in October instead. Since then, the company has announced several sweeping changes to the Recall feature that are designed to improve its security.

For example, Recall for Windows will now store encrypted data, and the encryption keys are protected via the CPU’s trusted platform module (TPM). Microsoft says that the feature can only be used inside a secure environment, in order to protect user data from being accessed by other users.

Microsoft has also made some changes to Recall, in order to protect user data from being compromised by malware — the feature will include anti-hammering and rate limiting measures. Meanwhile, access to Recall and the feature’s settings can only be unlocked using Windows Hello authentication, with a PIN as a fallback method.

The company has also clarified that Recall will be opt-in for all users with a Copilot+ PC and that it can be completely removed. If the feature is rolled out to Windows Insiders by December, we can expect Microsoft to finally release it for all Copilot+ PC owners over the next year.

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