May 1st 2024
Windows Weekly 879
The Cockroach of CPUs
FY24 Q3 Earnings, AI Explorer, Github Copilot Workspace
Records live every Wednesday at 2:00pm Eastern / 11:00am Pacific / 18:00 UTC.
FY24 Q3 Earnings, AI Explorer, Github Copilot Workspace
MICROSOFT EARNINGS
- Microsoft’s AI bet is paying off: Net income of $21.9 billion on revenues of $61.9 billion in the quarter ending March 31
- Rocket sled upwards except for two things, both hardware: Surface devices and Xbox consoles
- Intelligent Cloud was again Microsoft’s biggest business unit, with $26.7 billion in revenues, up 21 percent year-over-year (YOY) and driven primarily by Azure
- Productivity and Business Processes delivered $19.6 billion in revenues, a gain of 12 percent YOY and driven by Office 365
- More Personal Computing brought up the rear, with $15.6 billion in revenues, up 12 percent YOY. Windows revenues from PC makers jumped 11 percent
- Amy Hood's comment about this all happening when MSFT is investing $10+ billion per quarter on AI infrastructure and purchased Activision Blizzard (AB) for $69 is classic. This is firing on all cylinders stuff
More Earnings Learnings
- Intel: The deathwatch continues
- AMD: Meager revenue gains, but PC market is looking OK at least
- Google/Alphabet: Explosive revenues, but its all ADs not AI
- Amazon: A wonder of the modern age, unique physical + digital advantages
- Samsung: Revenues up on strong phone, memory sales
Windows 11
- Windows 11 version 24H2 will include an AI Explorer feature. Will require NPUs/AI PCs. Might be exclusive to Qualcomm but that would be a huge mistake, seems unlikely. Runs in the background, captures everything you do, turns them into memories. Search for anything you’ve done using natural language (i.e. a chatbot interface). Analyze and interact with everything that’s currently on screen.
- Beta channel (sooner than 24H2) - improved widgets for some reason, File Explorer ”breadcrumbs” make a much-needed comeback, Show Desktop is back, baby
- Dev channel - Starting with the latest build, Microsoft has killed all the local account workarounds during Setup workarounds. Now what?
- Tiny11 Builder is updated with telemetry removal. It’s happening.
Microsoft 365
- Microsoft highlights new Copilot features for Microsoft 365 available now or soon
- OneDrive for web gets offline access (including Files on Demand), but only for commercial accounts
AI
- Email evidence shows why Microsoft partnered with OpenAI
- ChatGPT can now “remember” conversations. It’s sentient!
- Amazon Q is GA, and it’s for developers now too
- Microsoft announces GitHub Copilot Workspace and my brain hurts. Please help
- Apple is shopping around for AI and is talking to OpenAI again
Xbox
- Xbox Showcase returns on June 9, with mystery event that is obviously the next Call of Duty: Black Ops game because redacted
- Microsoft announces new Game Pass titles for early May. Guess what’s missing? You have one guess, hotshot. And seriously, haven’t we all played every Tomb Raider game already?
- Microsoft’s latest indie game showcase highlights the health of an ecosystem that doesn’t have to just be about AAA games
- Sea of Thieves comes to PlayStation 5
- Food for thought: Microsoft bought AB in October, has released only on AB title to Game Pass in what will soon be 7 months. Microsoft announced four cross-platform Xbox titles in February and they are all available now
- Fallout 4 next-gen update is here
Tips & Picks
- Tip of the week: Windows is the key to the MacBook Air
- App pick of the week: Arc browser for Windows
- RunAs Radio this week: SQL Server and AI with Muazma Zahid & Bob Ward
- Brown liquor pick of the week: Brancoveanu XO
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Links
- Microsoft Earnings Beat All Expectations as AI Bet Pays Off
- Intel Revenues Grew 9 Percent in Q1, But Warns on Q2
- AMD Revenues Up Just 2 Percent, But PC Business Surged
- Alphabet/Google Earnings Jump 15 Percent in Quarter, Thanks to Ads, Not AI
- Amazon Revenues Surge 13 Percent to $143.3 Billion
- Samsung Earnings Beat Expectations on Strong Phone Sales
- Windows 11’s Upcoming AI Explorer Feature Gets Detailed in New Report
- New Windows 11 Beta Build Improves Widgets on the Lock Screen
- Tiny11 Builder is Updated to Disable Telemetry
- Microsoft Highlights New Features in Copilot for Microsoft 365
- Copilot for Microsoft 365 Now Supports 16 Additional Languages
- OneDrive Adds an Offline Mode for Work and School Accounts
- Google Improves OneDrive and Microsoft 365 Integration with ChromeOS
- Fear of Google Pushed Microsoft to OpenAI Partnership
- ChatGPT Plus Can Now Remember Information From Previous Conversations
- Amazon Q is Generally Available for Businesses and Developers
- GitHub Announces Copilot Workspace
- Report: Apple Resumes Talks with OpenAI
- Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase Returns on June 9, Followed By Deep Dive Into New Game
- Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition and Kona 2: Brume Are Coming to Game Pass in May
- Microsoft Shows Off 19 New Indie Titles Coming to Xbox
- Sea of Thieves is Now Available on PlayStation 5
- Fallout 4’s Free Next-Gen Update is Now Available
- Apple MacBook Air 15-Inch M3 Review
- The Missing Pieces of the Puzzle (Premium)
- Review: Fallout TV Series
- Arc Browser is Now Available for Windows 11
- Arc Sync Comes to iPhone
- Microsoft Open Sources MS-DOS 4.0
- SQL Server and AI with Muazma Zahid & Bob Ward
- Brâncoveanu XO