AI function Recall: Preview version for Intel and AMD processors

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Microsoft has released the AI function Recall for Intel and AMD computers in the current Windows Insider Preview. At the same time, the company extended the test of Recall to the European Economic Area, including Germany. The prerequisite for the AI feature of Windows 11 is a device with a Copilot+ rating that contains a sufficiently dimensioned AI accelerator. Recall was already available two weeks ago for the ARM-based Snapdragon X1 chip from Qualcomm.

Microsoft revises Recall's handling of data

With Recall, users should be able to access content that they have previously seen on their computer. For example, they should be able to find previously edited documents more quickly and search through their text and image content. To do this, the tool regularly saves screenshots and uses artificial intelligence to evaluate their content in order to provide a searchable timeline. For users to be able to use Recall, they must actively consent to data storage. Because the recordings can also include confidential content, Recall came under fire. As a result, Microsoft withdrew the tool and revised it.

According to the company, Recall stores the screenshots in encrypted form on the hard disk and processes them using the internal NPU. A filter is also designed to make sensitive data unrecognizable, such as account data or passwords. Users can exclude certain websites and programs from Recall. Screenshots are blocked in the preview version of the AI application. Users can unlock their recordings with a PIN or biometric data via Windows Hello. Automatic or manual deletion of screenshots is also possible.

Preview brings image editing and search with AI

As part of Recall, the Insider Preview also includes a test version of Click to Do. Similar to Google's "Circle to Search" search, users can use the Windows key and mouse click to select content on the screen across all programs and have it analyzed and searched on the Internet with the help of AI. Other Click to Do functions are initially only available on computers with a Snapdragon X processor. These include summarizing or rewriting texts using Microsoft's small language model Phi Silica. The functions will also be available for Intel and AMD users in the future.

The preview version of Windows 11 extends Microsoft Paint with the Cocreator. The artificial intelligence generates an image based on a self-painted picture in conjunction with a prompt. Similar to Bing's image generator, images can now be generated locally in the Photos app using a text prompt, which are then displayed as a feed in the application. Users can also convert existing photos into a different style using generative AI. The Photos app requires a separate update of the program to version 2024.11120.1001.0 or higher.

Test Recall as a Windows Insider

If you want to test Windows Recall, you need a Copilot+-capable device. An AI accelerator with at least 40 TOPS (Trillion Operations Per Second) as well as an eight-core CPU, 256 GB hard disk space and 16 GB RAM are required. Users must register for the Windows Insider Preview and be logged into Windows 11 with the same account. The dev channel can be selected via the update settings. After a restart, an update with the build number 26120.2510 should be available. Microsoft also recommends updating the NPU drivers.

The recording of screenshots can be activated in the privacy settings of the operating system under the menu item "Recall & snapshots". To do this, users must have at least one biometric feature stored in Windows Hello, which requires Secure Boot and BitLocker. Recall is deactivated by default in the Enterprise and Education versions of Windows 11, administrators can enable the function and end users can activate it on their devices themselves.

More information on the AI functions can be found in the Windows Insider Blog.

(sfe)