Microsoft is testing two new features for Windows 11. The first aims to simplify updates for third-party apps: a unified hub showing available updates will appear in system settings. The second will allow the Copilot AI assistant to be integrated directly into the search box on the taskbar. Unlike the update hub, this feature is already sparking debate: Microsoft promises to make it optional, but users doubt the company will maintain that approach in the future.

A unified update hub for third-party apps

As Windows Latest discovered, an App Updates section has appeared in a preview build of Windows 11. It is located in system settings and is designed to manage updates for software developed by companies other than Microsoft.

Currently, many apps provide their own reminders to install a new version. Some display notifications at random times, while others check for updates only at launch. As a result, users may remain unaware for a long time that an important security fix is already available for an installed program.

The new section is intended to bring update information together in one place. Users will be able to quickly see which apps need attention and manage their updates through Windows settings. Essentially, Microsoft wants to give third-party software the convenience already familiar to users of apps from the Microsoft Store.

However, the feature is still in the early stages of testing. Developers will need to register their apps separately to participate in this system. When the new section was discovered, no apps had been connected to it yet.

It also remains unclear whether App Updates will make it into the final version of Windows 11, and exactly when that might happen.

Copilot will appear in the search box—but only if users choose

The second change concerns a major overhaul of Windows search. Microsoft intends to add an option to integrate Copilot directly into the search interface on the taskbar.

According to Windows Central, users will be able to receive brief AI answers directly in the search box. If a more detailed conversation is needed, they will be able to continue it in the full Copilot app.

Microsoft's key qualification is that the feature will be disabled by default. To use AI in search, users will have to enable the relevant setting themselves.

In its October post about the concept of “hybrid intelligence,” Microsoft confirmed that it plans to begin rolling out this feature later in 2026. It will initially be available in select regions.

This approach differs from the company's earlier experiments with Ask Copilot. At the time, Microsoft was testing a more radical change that effectively turned the search box into an interface for interacting with AI. Now, regular search will remain in place, with Copilot serving as an optional addition.

Users fear an optional feature will become mandatory

Copilot integration is drawing mixed reactions. Some users welcome the ability to decide for themselves whether they want AI in search. Others believe that even adding Copilot as an option is another step toward turning Windows into an operating system where AI is everywhere.

Many concerns relate less to the feature itself than to Microsoft's possible future policies. Users point out that optional features can eventually become enabled by default and then turn into interface elements that cannot be disabled.

In a Reddit discussion, one participant warned that features initially available only on an opt-in basis often shift over time to a model in which users must opt out manually. Other commenters also expressed doubts that Microsoft would keep the integration optional for long.

There is, however, an opposing view. Some users see the very presence of a toggle as a positive step and are calling on other technology companies to provide similar control over their AI features.

Microsoft is trying to restore trust in Windows 11

Both initiatives come amid Microsoft's broader campaign to improve Windows 11. The company promised to address the operating system's accumulated problems during 2026, including reducing the intrusive presence of AI and making updates less annoying.

A unified update hub for third-party apps fits well with this strategy: it solves a specific practical problem and gives users more control over their installed software.

The situation with Copilot is more complicated. Microsoft clearly wants to make AI an important part of Windows' future, while also trying to show that it does not intend to force it on every user. How long the company will stick to that principle remains unknown.

In the near term, both features appear to be an attempt to strike a balance between advancing Windows and meeting users' demand for a more convenient, predictable, and less cluttered system. But the final verdict on them will depend not only on how well they are implemented, but also on whether Microsoft preserves the choice it has promised.