Microsoft’s annual Build conference happened yesterday. If you are involved in the software world at all or just have a general interest in what major companies are up to, you’ll want to see what Microsoft is up to. Here are the details.

Artificial Intelligence

Microsoft’s future is in AI. The company has announce that bots will be at the crux of all Microsoft’s future plans. This means that Skype will eventually communicate with bots, Microsoft’s app will be AI based, and all things are moving towards AI for the company very quickly.

Cortana will be coming to the newest edition of Skype, and this means that users will be able to use Cortana to send messages and reply to messages on Skype. Cortana will also be available through Skype to do things like book hotel rooms and research trips (as the company demonstrated during the Build meeting).

All of this is very interesting considering Microsoft’s past failed attempts with AI. The company has told press that it learned from those mistakes and is working towards making AI much better. We will see what Microsoft comes out with when it comes to bots.

Windows 10 Update\t

This summer, Microsoft will release an update for Windows 10. The update will be free to all users and will include some interesting features. One of the standout updates is a security update - with the new Windows 10, you will be able to log into a website with your fingerprint or through a face scan. Additionally, any Xbox can be turned into a development kit, which is kind of a nice feature.

Cortana is at the center of the Windows 10 update as well. Cortana is now available in lock screen mode, and Cortana can also read Outlook emails from a lock screen. Both features will be very useful to Windows 10 users. Obviously, Microsoft is steeped in AI and believes that bots are the future.

Windows Ink

Another feature that’s part of the Windows 10 update is something called Windows Ink. Ink integrates with Cortana, and will let users do things like write a note that includes various trigger words, and Cortana will add that note to a user’s calendar (amongst other things). Ink lets users write things out using handwriting or by creating handwritten notes, and Cortana picks up the slack and coordinates those notes with things like emails and calendars.

Universal Apps

The other thing of note from the Build conference is Microsoft’s universal apps. The company is pushing universal apps heavily right now, and various apps that are already popular are headed to Microsoft’s Universal Apps feature. Starbucks, Instagram, Messenger, and Facebook are all part of the Universal Apps platform now.

So while Microsoft didn’t unleash any new hardware at Build, it’s clear that the company is working on a plethora of other things including a heavy emphasis on AI. All of these changes will be coming in the next few months with the summer season slated as the primary kickoff for all things Microsoft related. I look forward to seeing what this company puts out!