Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming: AI Assistant Promises to Enhance Xbox Experience

Microsoft's new AI "Copilot for Gaming" struggles to justify its existence

Last year, Microsoft showed off a pair of concept videos highlighting how "real-time conversations with your AI companion copilot" might one day provide personalized guidance and companionship while playing a solo game of Minecraft. Now, Microsoft is announcing that it will roll out "Copilot for Gaming" as an "ultimate gaming sidekick" that will be available via mobile app preview for Xbox Insiders starting in April. Unfortunately, the current version of Microsoft's gaming "copilot" seems to fall well short of last year's demo, providing some bare-bones automation of functions that can mostly be achieved pretty easily today without the aid of AI. The new app feels less like a revolutionary new use case for conversational AI and more like a glorified, Xbox-branded version of Apple's Siri. Wait, is that it? Watching a short, livestreamed demo of the new Copilot for Gaming app, my reactions quickly shifted from "that's kind of neat" to "wait, is that it?" That process started from the very first moment, when a player asked, "I want to get back into Age of Empires... Can you install it?" Conversational installation prompts could be a bit more convenient than simply clicking the handful of buttons needed to start a game install without AI, but it's not the most exciting use case to lead off with. The same goes for the demo's conclusion, where Copilot notes that "your friends are online" and suggests that the player "hop in to Sea of Thieves on cloud gaming." Again, this seems like the kind of thing any Xbox player could pull off for themselves without any help from Copilot. And while Microsoft insists that AI will help these game recommendations be individually tailored to each player, most players should be able to figure out their next game for themselves without a marketing-adjacent AI message pushing it on them. While playing Age of Empires, the player in our demo asked about "the best way to take out the beast," a query that brought up a small text snippet with tips for how to do just that. There's definitely some value in consulting a text guide this way rather than spending a minute or two searching out the same information using current online resources. But that benefit depends heavily on Copilot understanding both your question and the answer fully, without retreating to hallucinations that could have no bearing on the actual game. The same could be said for the demo player asking Copilot to "tell me about the real Frankish siege of Tyre," simulating the experience of gaming while sitting next to a college professor. This seems like the kind of thing a Copilot-less player could easily look up on their own when the game is done, sacrificing some multitasking convenience for the assurance that an AI isn't potentially making up details about a historical event. Looking toward the future The most intriguing part of the current Copilot for Gaming demo came when Copilot offered "a recap of where you left off" to fill the time during installation. The AI voice then proceeded to go into specifics about how the player's last fight "didn't go as planned" when "your base was destroyed by the beast." This is a feature that could be genuinely useful for lapsed players who return to a game after a monthslong break, only to find that they've forgotten what led them to their current save point. It's also a feature that Microsoft says depends on an AI-powered, personalized "understanding of where players are at in the game and what they're doing." For the most part, though, the current demonstrated benefits of Copilot for Gaming are not much more than conveniences, saving you the hassle of pausing your game for tasks that would take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes without AI. While those perks are nice enough, they're a far cry from the promise of the fully integrated conversational gaming partner Microsoft first teased ten months ago. That kind of full-featured AI gaming companion was relegated to a part of the presentation for "forward-looking explorations" that show off "concepts" of what a later version of Copilot might be able to do in the future. In addition to a Minecraft session that played out like an interactive FAQ (complete with inane newcomer questions like "is that a zombie?") that forward-looking demo also included some new examples of potential AI integration for Overwatch. There were some promising moments in that Overwatch demo, such as when Copilot suggested a new hero selection that gelled well with both the player's current teammates and the player's play history on the current map. Copilot also was able to respond to questions like "how did I die so fast?" with the kind of specific tips a real-world gaming coach might give ("You stayed in the fight too long after your teammates were down"). If Microsoft can pull off that kind of easy, adaptive discussion of live gameplay in the future, we could see ourselves happily chatting with Copilot during our everyday gaming sessions. For now, though, we can't see as much point in a version that simply automates a few minor gaming hassles.

Xbox debuts a new AI-powered gaming companion for mobile users

Ahead of the Game Developer's Conference (GDC), Xbox revealed on Thursday that it's experimenting with an AI-powered gaming sidekick. "Copilot for Gaming," powered by Microsoft's AI technology, is a voice-activated assistant designed to enhance the gaming experience and is designed to answer questions, complete tasks, and even criticize if you're playing poorly. "It can trash talk you if that's what you need," said Fatima Kardar, corporate vice president of gaming AI at Microsoft, in an episode of Xbox's official podcast released on Thursday. In a briefing with the press, the company demonstrated several use cases, such as providing real-time tips -- like suggesting which Overwatch character to pick for your team based on their strengths. It even looks at your past character selections on a particular map. The AI can also advise you on your next move to win the fight and how to improve in future encounters. Xbox partnered with game studios to ensure that the AI's responses are accurate since information found on the internet can sometimes be misleading or outdated, Kardar explained. This means that when you ask the Copilot for help with a game (though it won't let you cheat), it will provide you with the correct information. Additionally, it can notify you when your friends are online and ask if you want to jump into a game with them. If your friends are offline, however, the Copilot can serve as a companion that adapts to your gameplay style. Other smaller tasks the AI can handle include reminding you what happened during your last gaming session, installing games for you, and recommending new titles based on your preferences. Currently, the Copilot for Gaming is available only through the Xbox mobile app and will pull up as a second screen while you play a game. Xbox plans to improve the feature based on user feedback. Other companies exploring AI agents for video games include Google and Sony, among others. For instance, last year, Google DeepMind researchers developed SIMA, a game-playing companion that plays alongside users and can be given instructions. Sony PlayStation is reportedly working on an AI-powered version of Aloy, a character from the video game Horizon Forbidden West, according to The Verge.

Microsoft's AI Coach for Gamers Is Starting Tests Next Month

Xbox players will soon be getting an AI-powered gaming assistant to help them with game recommendations or to improve their skills, as revealed on the Official Xbox Podcast on Thursday. Announced last year, Copilot for Gaming is powered by Microsoft's AI assistant and is meant to help players save time and better experience games. This can include lessening the headache when it comes to downloading and updating titles or giving hints as to side quests that they might end up missing out on. Copilot for Gaming will first hit mobile in April and those interested can sign up for early access via the Xbox Insider program. It'll act as a second screen companion via the Xbox mobile app, initially. "It has to be personalized to you the way that you like to play and it should be able to help you kind of get further in gaming, be your companion, and help connect you with families and communities," said Fatima Kardar, Xbox corporate vice president of Gaming AI on the podcast. For Kardar, who is newer to the gaming space, Copilot helps her with game recommendations, which is handy for someone not tuned into the latest releases. Jason Ronald, vice president of next generation at Xbox, added that Copilot can recommend the types of cars to drive in a racing game that better fits his playstyle, for example. In a demo shown during the podcast, Copilot assisted in Overwatch 2 by recommending which heroes to pick to counter others. Kardar notes that gaming is the only form of media that can leave users stuck. This is where Copilot can help gamers get through games. At the same time, she doesn't want Copilot for Gaming to be intrusive, meaning the AI will adapt itself to be personalized for how a player likes to play. Xbox didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The upcoming test is happening as Microsoft continues going all-in on AI. With the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, Microsoft made a multibillion-dollar deal with OpenAI. That deal led to the development of Copilot, Microsoft's AI assistant in Windows. We've since seen AI enter all parts of Microsoft's business, from PowerPoint to Azure. However, at the same time, the video game industry has been hit with layoffs throughout the last few years, including ones at Microsoft. Concerns have been raised of AI slowly replacing software developers. Last month, Microsoft revealed Muse, an AI model for gameplay ideation. Some developers are less keen on embracing it, however, suggesting that the technology is more of a cost-cutting measure than something developers are actually asking for. Xbox was careful to say that Copilot for Gaming would leave control to the player and any AI assistance would only be additive. The podcast also detailed that Xbox Play Anywhere, a program that allows gamers to pick up their games on either console or PC, has been expanded to include 1,000 titles.

Microsoft's new Xbox Copilot will act as an AI gaming coach

Microsoft is preparing to launch an AI-powered Copilot for Gaming soon that will guide Xbox players through games and act as an assistant to download and launch games. Copilot for Gaming, as Microsoft is branding it, will be available through the Xbox mobile app initially and is designed to work on a second screen as a companion or assistant. Microsoft is positioning Copilot for Gaming as a sidekick of sorts, one that will accompany you through games, offering up tips and guides and useful information about a game world. During a press briefing, Sonali Yadav, product manager for gaming AI, demonstrated several scenarios for what Copilot for Gaming could be used for. One involved a concept demo of Copilot assisting an Overwatch 2 player by coaching them on the mistakes they made when trying to push without teammates.

Xbox announces 'Copilot for Gaming' AI assistant -- early access coming to Xbox mobile app, more details to come at GDC 2025

Xbox thinks AI can make you a better gamer. Xbox has announced its new "Copilot for Gaming", dropping the news this morning on The Official Xbox Podcast. A new AI assistant for console, mobile, and perhaps PC, Copilot for Gaming promises to help with all parts of the gaming experience -- from picking a new game, to picking up where you left off in an old save file, to getting good at skill-based games. Fatima Kardar, Xbox's CVP of Gaming AI, and Jason Ronald, VP of Next Generation, joined Xbox's in-house podcast to explain what an AI assistant for consoles looks like. Copilot for Gaming comes as a way to help address common pain points for gamers, like returning to an old save file completely lost in the narrative or hitting what feels like the skill ceiling in an FPS. "Gaming is the only form of entertainment where you can get stuck," shared Kardar. "So that's where you want something to show up to say, 'let's help you get past that.'" Copilot for Gaming seeks to be a multi-device helper, living on both the console and the Xbox mobile app (no clarification was made as to whether Copilot for Gaming will come to PC gamers, but as the podcast also highlighted Xbox's "Play Anywhere" initiative, it is likely to arrive on PC as well). As new generations grow used to using multiple devices at once, Xbox aims to be a simultaneously multi-device experience. No features of Copilot for Gaming are locked-in or official at the time of writing, with Kardar and Ronald selling Copilot on the promises of what can be and extremely early-access video clips. In the podcast and accompanying blog post, Xbox shows off a wide array of possible features: giving personalized game recommendations, recapping your save file progress as it downloads an old favorite, or giving tips in between respawns in Overwatch, from what hero to counter-pick against a dominant enemy to how exactly you misplayed in an embarrassing clip. (see 15:19 and 17:59 in the video below for a staged Overwatch concept and live Minecraft demo) In total, Copilot for Gaming claims no fewer than 10 unique features. Some are expansions of existing features, like adding the save-file recap as you download games to your Xbox from your phone or suggesting new titles to play next, while others are wholly game-specific. Copilot can give Minecraft game tips, including helping you retrace your steps to find ores you missed in your peripheral vision when cheats are enabled in-game. Ronald even claims Copilot will also help players pick new characters or playstyles based on their tastes in different game titles. While Xbox's Copilot claims should be taken with a grain of salt, as Kardar clarifies that no features are final or shippable just yet, the pitch does make some points that are innovative in the gaming AI space. Razer's Project Ava and Nvidia's Project G-Assist, two other gaming-focused AI helpers announced as concepts in the past year, share some of Xbox's general gameplay advice claims, but lack the meta-experience features that Xbox can offer by "Recalling" old game files and advising new games to play. "It's not just about AI showing up to help you. It's about AI showing up at the right moment," Kardar continued. "I think we have to really think of the experience that we build; it can't be intrusive." An extremely early-access version of Copilot for Gaming will come soon to Xbox Insider Program members via the Xbox mobile app in the coming days. Kardar and Ronald both clarified that Copilot for Gaming will be hitting early access shockingly early in its development cycle, for the benefit of receiving player feedback to lay the foundation of what to focus development on. Microsoft's Copilot AI assistant for PCs has been justifiably critiqued for having a name that writes checks its performance cannot cash; with very few novel features beyond the controversial "Recall", Copilot can feel more like an untrained, uninvited passenger on your PC. Copilot for Gaming so far seems to come much closer to living up to its Copilot name, assuming Xbox can provide the breadth of promises they made today. Xbox will share more about Copilot for Gaming at GDC 2025 next week, so be sure to tune into our coverage of the event for more details on this and any other hardware-related announcements at the gaming trade show.

Microsoft is making a Copilot AI assistant for gamers, but it's not clear what it does

Microsoft just announced the pending availability of Copilot for Gaming, an AI-powered assistant that's being advertised as a novel way to help players get better at their favorite titles. The company says it will accompany people through games, offering tips, guides and useful information along the way. Microsoft boasts it can also help folks download and launch games, solving the eternal problem of, uh, pressing a button. Copilot for Gaming will be available as part of the Xbox mobile app, so it's being positioned as a second screen type of thing. We aren't entirely sure how it works. There are demo videos but they are just proof of concept designs. One shows Copilot recommending a hero for Overwatch 2 that complements the rest of the team. Another video found the AI assistant answering questions about Minecraft building techniques. The demo also showed Copilot enabling cheats in Minecraft, with the bot telling a player where crafting materials could be found. Hopefully, this tech will be ready the next time Elon Musk wants to show off his Path of Exile 2 "skills." Microsoft says that Copilot will be able to see your game screen, via app integration, to offer real-time guidance. Again, we don't know how that will work or what kind of information it will be able to cook up. None of the aforementioned tasks will be available during the initial launch, so we don't even know what, if anything, players will be able to do with this thing. That's modern AI for ya! In any event, Copilot for Gaming will be available to Xbox Insider members in April. Microsoft says it will iterate according to user feedback. Once the company has ironed out some kinks, it should become available to more players. Microsoft also shared today that the Xbox Play Anywhere program now allows access to more than 1,000 games. This is a cross-platform service that lets people enjoy a game on both Xbox consoles and PC. The platform even keeps track of saves, progress and achievements.

Microsoft unveils Copilot for Gaming, offering AI-powered coaching and recommendations

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. Something to look forward to: Microsoft is introducing Copilot for Gaming, an AI-powered assistant designed to enhance the Xbox experience by guiding players through games and streamlining various aspects of gameplay. Initially available through the Xbox mobile app, Copilot for Gaming will offer tips, guides, and insights about game worlds. Sonali Yadav, product manager for gaming AI, positioned the tool as a "sidekick" that accompanies players without disrupting the gaming flow. Yadav showcased several concept demos highlighting Copilot's potential capabilities. For instance, in a demo involving Overwatch 2, Copilot analyzed gameplay mistakes and suggested optimal hero picks to complement team compositions, detailing the strengths and weaknesses of each character. Another demo featured Minecraft, where Copilot could answer crafting-related questions and locate specific materials. The AI can observe the player's screen, providing tailored guidance based on their actions, such as pinpointing crafting resources in Minecraft when cheats are enabled. While these demos were conceptual and won't be part of the initial launch, they illustrate the potential of Copilot for Gaming. Microsoft plans to test early versions of Copilot with Xbox Insiders in April, starting on mobile devices before expanding to other platforms. The company emphasizes that player feedback will be crucial in shaping the product's direction. "Gaming is the only form of entertainment where you can get stuck. So that's where you want something to show up to say, 'let's help you get past that,'" Fatima Kardar, Xbox Corporate Vice President of Gaming AI, said on The Official Xbox podcast. Kardar also highlighted the importance of timing in AI assistance, stating, "It's not just about AI showing up to help you. It's about AI showing up at the right moment." Copilot for Gaming is built on three core principles: capability, adaptability, and personalization. It aims to assist players in various ways, from personalized game recommendations and setup to helpful coaching and maintaining connections with friends. "All of it is with one goal: to help you to get to play first," Kardar said. In addition to Copilot for Gaming, Microsoft celebrated a milestone with over 1,000 titles now supporting Xbox Play Anywhere, allowing gamers to play titles across Xbox and Windows 10/11 devices at no additional cost. Jason Ronald, Vice President of Next Generation, said that Xbox Play Anywhere titles see a 20 percent increase in gameplay due to their flexibility. This feature enables players to access their saves, progress, and achievements across devices, making it a valuable asset for those who prefer to play on multiple platforms.

Microsoft debuts new Copilot assistant for Xbox built as an AI gaming sidekick

In advance of this year's Game Developers Conference, Microsoft revealed a new version of its AI-powered personal assistant Copilot that's designed for the Xbox platform. The new program, called Copilot for Gaming, is designed as a personal assistant for anyone playing video games on the Xbox platform. It can keep track of where you were in a game and provide a quick recap of where you were when you left off; provide information on related topics, such as the real-world history behind an Age of Empires map; provide tips or advice on gameplay; or keep a player advised on downloads or what their friends are doing. Copilot for Gaming made its public debut Thursday on an episode of the Official Xbox Podcast, featuring Microsoft VPs Fatima Kardar and Jason Ronald. The day before, Microsoft hosted a media roundtable with Microsoft general manager of AI Gaming Innovation Haiyan Zhang and group product manager Sonali Yudav. Zhang presented an example of Copilot for Gaming in use, where it provided an Overwatch 2 player with coaching, such as what character to use and why he died suddenly during gameplay. Copilot was also shown giving a first-time Minecraft player step-by-step instructions on how to get started with the game, such as what materials to gather first and what to build with them. According to Microsoft, Copilot for Gaming's advice is derived from similar sources to other versions of Copilot. "Copilot for Gaming accesses public sources of information from the web using the Bing search index and results," a Microsoft spokesperson told GeekWire, "and provides tailored responses for the individual player based on its understanding of the players activity and the games they're playing on the Xbox platform." The spokesperson continued, "Our goal is to have Copilot for Gaming source the most accurate game knowledge -- so we are working with game studios to make sure the information Copilot surfaces reflects their vision, and Copilot will refer players back to the original source of the information." A preview of Copilot for Windows is currently scheduled to become available on mobile devices in April, and will initially be limited to members of the Xbox Insider program. Users of the preview version will be able to decide how and when they want to interact with the Xbox's Copilot, including whether or not it has access to their conversation histories on Xbox.

Microsoft thinks trash-talking AI can help you game better

Summary Copilot for Gaming can provide assistance to gamers, like looking up guides. Users have the choice to use Copilot for Gaming, it isn't forced on them. Microsoft plans to improve the service based on player feedback. With the rise of tech companies shoving AI into every nook and cranny of our lives, Microsoft has done the inevitable, revealing a fresh AI for gamers called Copilot for Gaming. As you can guess, it's Copilot, but now it can apparently trash-talk gamers. It's all very "how do you do fellow kids," and while there may be some usefulness to having a constantly accessible AI assistant when gaming, one has to wonder how many gamers actually want an AI assistant for gaming in the first place, or why an existing AI needs a gamer skin to begin with. Once again, the latest and greatest AI has to offer appears to be a solution looking for a problem, now with the added cloak of gamer trash talk to really appeal to the young ones. But no, Microsoft isn't out of touch with its audience. Nope. Related Copilot: Microsoft's AI-powered chatbot explained Microsoft teamed up with OpenAI to give us a powerful Copilot Posts 2 Copilot for Gaming could be useful But so far it apparently stinks Utilizing an AI assistant while gaming could be helpful and Microsoft has detailed a few features that gamers should find beneficial. Say you get stuck in a level and don't know where to go. Fire up Copilot for Gaming and ask how to get unstuck. Or maybe you're wondering what the next boss has in store for you, and need to know what weapons and consumables to bring to the fight, Copilot for Gaming to the rescue. That is, if it understood your voice commands in the first place, and doesn't hallucinate. Source: Microsoft Microsoft has even clarified that gamers have to choose to use Copilot for Gaming, it's not forced on players, which is certainly good news. Of course Microsoft plans to tweak the service as it is tested, so player feedback from the Xbox Insider Program will be crucial to ensure Copilot for Gaming doesn't land as a dud. Testing will begin on mobile first, and Microsoft has even supplied a mockup of what that may look like, which basically showcases a user asking the AI to install a game they are viewing on their mobile phone on their console. Installing and updating games through voice commands is another way Copilot for AI could be handy for gamers. Then, there is the trash-talking feature mentioned in the Copilot for Gaming podcast reveal video, which just feels a little too on the nose for a gaming-specific AI. You know how most people despise gamer aesthetics on products? That's all AI trash talking amounts to, a skin marketers think will appeal to children. Meanwhile, back in reality, all you need to do is go online in any competitive game if you're looking to be insulted until you improve your skills. No AI necessary. Sadly, the most egregious issue with Copilot for Gaming is that it barely delivers (so says Arstechnica), at least in its current state, looking to be no more useful than console UI popups that already exist, like alerts friends are playing a certain game you can join. In other words, so far, there is little that's revolutionary about Copilot for Gaming, and while that may change as the tool is tested, it's hard to ignore just how many companies are making big promises for AI that currently underdelivers. Still, if you'd like to toss your hat in the ring for testing, you'll first have to join the Xbox Insider Program.

Your Xbox Is Getting a Copilot

Summary Microsoft is adding Copilot to Xbox to provide in-game guidance and performance tips. Copilot will assist players stuck in games by suggesting strategies for overcoming challenges. In addition to support for gameplay, Copilot will recommend, download, and update games based on preferences. Copilot is, by now, present in basically every Microsoft product or software out there. Your Windows OS, your browser, your Microsoft 365 suite, and everything in between. So when Microsoft announced it would be adding Copilot to Xbox, it didn't come across as much of a surprise. Microsoft has announced that it will be rolling out "Copilot for Gaming," a fresh new take on Copilot that's meant to help you out in games. As per Fatima Kardar, Vice President of Gaming AI at Xbox, "gaming is the only form of entertainment where you can get stuck," further adding that "that's where you want something to show up to say, 'let's help you get past that.'" Related Microsoft Flip-Flops Its Way Into a Native Copilot App After four or five Copilot app redesigns, Microsoft is finally offering more than a simple web wrapper. Posts So how does Copilot work on your Xbox, exactly? It's meant to be a "companion" of sorts that does a little bit of everything. Copilot will, for one, offer advice and guidance to help players improve their in-game performance -- if you're stuck somewhere in a game and you can't get past a final boss or a puzzle, Copilot will help you by telling you what you should do to get past that. Most people have referenced guides for decades to get assistance with getting past games, so this is just a way of pulling up those steps more quickly and right from your game. It probably references community-written walkthroughs, online guides, or other forum posts to give users info on what to do to get past a specific part -- the AI model might have knowledge itself on how to do some extremely basic stuff, such as Minecraft crafting recipes, but it might have a hard time with newer games released after the model's knowledge cutoff date. It will, at one point or another, have to search Bing for more information. At least from the prototypes shown by Microsoft, which might or might not resemble the final product, it doesn't look like the sources are being referenced on-screen if that's the case, which is not ideal. A lot of the time, guides receive contributions from regular people who get little to no payment for their work and get no benefit from writing them other than community recognition. Copilot tends to be really good at listing out sources whenever it does reference one, given it was first launched as an AI component to the Bing search engine. So we're hoping that we're wrong here. This is not the only thing the AI does. Copilot will also suggest games tailored to individual player preferences, and it will also help to streamline the process of finding, downloading, and updating games. Gamers will decide how and when to engage with Copilot, ensuring the AI enhances, rather than intrudes upon, the gaming experience. Kardar stressed, "It's not just about AI showing up to help you, it's about AI showing up at the right moment... it cannot be intrusive." It's a weird thing to add AI on, and some people might still prefer to just keep it dormant and look up guides online. It will also probably take some time before we see a finalized version of this arrive on Xbox consoles or PC games. Microsoft says that, for now, it's just starting with a mobile preview for Xbox Insiders, but we might see more down the road. Source: Microsoft

I write about video games for a living, and Xbox's new AI Copilot has me concerned

Artificial intelligence in gaming is nothing new. GPU manufacturers like NVIDIA and AMD have been using machine learning to upscale visuals in recent years, even generating additional frames so that hardware is less reliant on brute force. The PlayStation 5 Pro does similarly. Earlier this week, we also learned Sony is testing AI-powered characters. Microsoft is taking a slightly different tact with its new Copilot featurest. Revealed yesterday, March 13, on the Official Xbox Podcast (which you can watch below) Xbox has announced "Copilot for Gaming", dubbing it an AI sidekick of sorts. Fatima Kardar, Corporate VP of Gaming AI, and Jason Ronald, Vice President of Xbox Gaming Devices are pretty excited about it, but is it really what we need? The idea is genuinely impressive, since it'll tie in with Xbox consoles and the wider AI ecosystem. You can, for example, ask Copilot to download a game you didn't finish and have it explain where you were at. It can even poke fun at your misplays (if that's what you want) and recommend new games to try - or help tailor games you are playing to your own personal tastes, like suggesting a car type in Forza that it thinks you'll appreciate. As with anything involving AI, though, there are serious ethical concerns. One of the bigger features shown in the proof of concept is the inclusion of AI strategy guides, where Copilot can go and find you a way to defeat a tricky boss or complete a puzzle. That's all well and good, but as the tendrils of AI reach out, there may not be anything left for it to source from. You see, in recent years, games media (that's news, reviews, features, and guides) has been through the mill. Google's aggressive push for AI overviews that source from content while taking away from outlets that produce those articles in the first place has led to huge layoffs, and even closures of promising outlets. I know this because this shift cost me my job. I've seen firsthand hard-working folks who write guides for a living (which requires no small amount of talent, by the way) swept away by AI-written, cheap imitations full of inaccuracy. How will Copilot recommend a strategy guide for, say, Forza Horizon 5 when Copilot itself hasn't played the game, and is essentially pulling from sources that, in many cases, haven't played the game either? These are bigger questions than I'm able to answer here but as I see it, it's yet another ethical conundrum for generative AI, and it'll be interesting how Microsoft (and gamers) reckon with that.

Microsoft confirms Copilot can be tested by Xbox Insiders next month and shares new details about how the AI sidekick will enhance the player experience: 'It has to be about gameplay, it has to be personalized to you'

Microsoft has shared new details about its new Copilot for Gaming feature, which is set to go live on mobile for Xbox Insiders in April. In the latest episode of the Xbox Podcast, host Ethan Rothamel was joined by Fatima Kardar, CVP Gaming AI, and Jason Ronald, VP of Next Generation, to discuss the development of Copilot for Gaming, a new AI sidekick aimed at enhancing the Xbox experience (via Xbox Wire). "That is one of the things that we are working on and we want to bring it out to players to try," Kardar said. "Copilot in the context of Xbox has to be about gameplay, it has to be personalized to you, the way that you like to play and it should be able to help you get further in gaming, be your companion, and help connect you with family and communities." Microsoft's Copilot was released in 2023 and is described as an all-encompassing AI chatbot and assistant that can be used on Windows, specifically applications like Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. Now that the AI tool is coming to Xbox, Kardar explained that the sidekick can be personalized to help players and show up when it's needed in-game. "AI is going to be there and you can chat with it and trash talk you if that's what you need, but really AI can bring those people together and help you tell when your friends are doing things as well." Kardar continued, saying, "It's not just about AI showing up to help you, it's about AI showing up at the right moment. So I think we really have to think of the experience that we built, it can't be intrusive, it cannot show up in the middle of the game." Kardar said that Xbox wants people to "try it" because the more people who do, the more Copilot will learn. That's one of the reasons it's coming to mobile first for Xbox Insiders next month, according to Ronald, because it's a swifter way for Microsoft to receive feedback.

Xbox unveils Copilot of Gaming as an AI sidekick for gamers

Xbox AI conversation with Fatima Kardar, corporate vice president of gaming AI and Jason Ronald, VP Next Generation at Microsoft. Image Credit: Microsoft Microsoft unveiled its Copilot for Gaming initiative, an AI gaming sidekick that will enhance player experiences on Xbox. The company is showing a demo of the sidekick where you can verbally ask questions about controlling the game experience and the companion will answer them for you. Fatima Kardar, corporate vice president of gaming AI and Jason Ronald, VP Next Generation at Microsoft, discussed in a video the idea of developing CoPilot for gaming, starting with a debut in preview on mobile starting in April. The tech is similar to a demo that Krafton showed where it included an AI companion as your partner player in PUBG battle royale games. Microsoft is diving heavily into AI for games in part because the larger corporation is all-in when it comes to AI technology. Microsoft's entry in the large language model (LLM) race is CoPilot, and it is the tech that can power the use of generative AI in games. The aim is bringing new technologies and experiences to life, translating tech innovation to real product value, said Microsoft AI leaders in a press briefing. The key is the translation of the experience So to that end, you'll see Microsoft embracing experimentation. This means Microsoft will reveal new technologies earlier in the development process, without a lot of polish, than it otherwise might. To get this right, we will make sure the community has the opportunity to participate in giving feedback based on the new tech demos. In a demo of the tech, there was still some delay when a human asked a question and the AI companion answered. It seems like the delay is related to the AI reaching out to a datacenter to fetch the answer to a query. As I see it, the delay is so long that I think it's only useful between matches or after a match is done. that's useful, but it's not as useful as if they could tell you during the middle of the action. Still, the information can be useful. One player asked why they died in an Overwatch match, after it was over. And the delay in this case didn't matter because there was no ongoing action. The CoPilot said that a particular weapon "melted" the character and there was a way to counter such an attack. That kind of knowledge could be very helpful for a new player. In Minecraft, the advice was similarly useful and expert -- and so good for a new player to learn. To bring the tech to life, Microsoft is investing in a few areas. At the platform level, it has to make it easy for players to discover the AI companions and get started on the platform level. The company is also bringing the power of AI to make it easier and less tedious to develop, publish and operate games. And underlying all of the effort is the investment Xbox is making in building the Xbox Gaming AI platform. The goal is to get help to players whether they have small support questions or big ones. In Age of Empires, you could ask what's the best way to undertake a siege or make it easy to play a multiplayer game with friends. You can ask the AI to recommend games to you. If you're frustrated with game mechanics, you can ask the AI for pointers. In multiplayer matches, it can analyze your play and make recommendations.

Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming preview leaves us with more questions than it answers

The big question mark about Copilot for Gaming -- and really anything that presents itself as "artificial intelligence" -- is how it's getting its information and from where. This technology isn't learning in any real sense, but simply acting as a personalized search engine sifting through the terabytes of illicitly obtained data OpenAI uses to train its GPT-4 large language model. Copilot for Gaming could very well be pulling info from any number of guides from sites like Polygon, Kotaku, and IGN or even tips shared on Reddit, ResetEra, and GameFAQs.

Copilot for Gaming is like a built-in Nintendo Help Line

Copilot for Gaming is an AI that can improve gaming experience, and it's on the way for Xbox players soon. Fatima Kardar, Xbox Corporate VP of Gaming AI, demoed the features on the Official Xbox Podcast and showed how the tool can help players jump right back into a game without much downtime. Recommended Videos It's an experience all gamers know: You come back to a game (like Skyrim) after a long break with no idea why you're wielding a flaming sword, why the townsfolk are angry, or where that huge bounty came from. Or, in simpler applications, you have no memory of what's happening in the story up to that point. Please enable Javascript to view this content When asked where a player had left off in Age of Empires IV, Copilot answered, "Last time, you were defending Tyre in the Sultans Ascend campaign and ventured out to take the fight to the Franks, but...let's just say it didn't go as planned." It then followed up with, "Your base was destroyed by the Beast after a failed head-on battle with your Turkic Horse Archers." Kardar says you can even adjust the level of snark that Copilot responds with. Another part of the video shows a player asking Copilot for Minecraft advice in real time, but the service refused to answer certain questions until cheats were enabled. Kardar said, "Gaming is the only form of entertainment where you can get stuck, so that's where you want something to show up to say, 'let's help you get past that." Another feature showed a player asking for a guide on defeating a specific enemy, for which Copilot provided a series of answers and advice. However, Xbox didn't provide information on the data set, and that raises questions about how its answers are being generated. Copilot has a lot of potential, both in terms of ease of use as well as accessibility. Kardar says the feature is there when you need it, but can easily be pushed to the side if you don't want to use it. However, it does raise privacy concerns -- exactly how much of your data can it access? -- among other questions. Digital Trends reached out to Microsoft for clarity on what data it is scraping to generate tips. We will update this story when we recieve a response.

Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming uses AI to solve a problem every gamer faces

AI could be saving you in a game you're terrible at. (Image credit: Microsoft) AI has been a part of video games from almost the beginning. Developers programmed computer opponents for players to compete with and ultimately "beat" the game. In the current AI boom, the technology has been used in different ways for gaming. Nvidia has used AI to enhance graphics with its latest RTX 50-series GPUs. Meanwhile, some developers have leveraged AI to produce low-effort games, also referred to as "e-slop," often sold for just a few dollars in digital stores. Microsoft wants to take a different approach with AI and gaming by incorporating its Copilot tool into video games. Copilot for Gaming is a new concept Microsoft revealed on Thursday. It's intended to be a helper that works on both the Xbox console and app, with the idea being that AI can help gamers in different scenarios and act as a sidekick. Some of the examples of how Copilot for Gaming would work were shown in an episode of the Official Xbox Podcast. This included using Copilot to give personalized game recommendations, provide in-game assistance, keeping connected with online friends, or recapping a player's saved progress in a game if they're returning to the game after some time away. Microsoft will first launch Copilot for Gaming on its Xbox mobile app to gather feedback and insights from players. Copilot's capabilities will likely evolve as more users interact with it. Microsoft will reveal more details about Copilot for Gaming at the Game Developers Conference, which begins Monday in San Francisco. The conference is typically when developers show off some of the latest ideas regarding making video games, and AI is likely to be the big focal point of the show. Microsoft isn't the first company to come up with the concept of AI helping gamers while playing a game. Last year, Nvidia showed off its Project G-Assist. The AI not only learns common player questions at different points in a game and finds answers but also determines the best graphics settings based on a player's PC hardware. Nvidia said in January that Project G-Assist would be added to its Nvidia app in February, but it doesn't appear to be on the app at the time this news article was published. Razer is also working on its AI-gaming sidekick, which, funny enough, it refers to as a "copilot." Project Ava was shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, and it works more like an AI coach. It will help devise a strategy for a League of Legends match or help defeat a boss based on how you're playing and not some strategies found online. Razer currently has a beta sign-up for those interested in trying out its AI.

Microsoft to Integrate AI into Xbox With Copilot for Game Assistance - Decrypt

As someone who plays Apex Legends religiously, the idea of an AI-powered coach is tempting -- especially when coaching services can be costly. If a free chatbot can help me rack up more wins, I'm all in. For me and millions of other gamers on Xbox, a new Copilot feature is promising to lift our game. During an episode of the Official Xbox Podcast, Xbox Corporate Vice President of Gaming AI Fatima Kardar revealed that Microsoft's AI assistant Copilot would be coming to the platform. The move is intended to save players time downloading and updating games and help them improve at the games they play, she said. "Gaming is the only form of entertainment where you can get stuck," Kardar said in a podcast. "It's not just about AI showing up to help you, it's about AI showing up at the right moment." Xbox parent company Microsoft has incorporated artificial intelligence into many of its products through its Copilot AI. In April 2024, Microsoft began testing AI as a virtual assistant for customer support. Microsoft has also leveraged AI to give game developers the tools to craft in-game dialogue and quests. While a specific date has not been set, the Xbox copilot feature will first become available on mobile devices, Kardar said. "You're having a companion experience, even if you're playing on your console or if you're playing somewhere else," she said. Your experience shows up on mobile, and people are starting to get used to two devices or two screens at the same time," she said. "The Xbox is not about a device. An Xbox is about me, the person, and my companion should go everywhere with me." Kardar added that Xbox is looking to enhance player engagement through AI-driven features and more immersive experiences. "Copilot in the context of Xbox has to be about gameplay. It must be personalized to how you like to play -- helping you progress in gaming, be your companion, and connect you with families and communities," she said. "AI will be there -- you can chat with it, and it can trash talk you if that's what you need. But really, AI could bring people together and tell you when your friends are active," Kardar added. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Decrypt.

Microsoft unveils Copilot for Gaming, an AI-powered 'ultimate gaming sidekick' that will let you talk to your console so you don't have to talk to your friends

Early-stage work on the gaming-focused AI was revealed during today's Official Xbox Podcast. Copilot, Microsoft's AI-powered chatbot assistant thing, is coming to Xbox as "Copilot for Gaming," which aims to "help you save time, find new games you're likely to love, or even to help ease you back into a game you may have stepped away from." "Copilot for Gaming is built on three principles: capability, adaptability, and personalization," Microsoft said. "It is designed to assist players in various ways, from personalized game recommendations and seamless game setup, to helpful coaching and maintaining connections with friends." Xbox corporate vice president of gaming AI Fatima Kardar and vice president of next generation Jason Ronald demonstrated a couple examples of Copilot for Gaming's in-game functionality during today's episode of the Official Xbox Podcast. First, in Overwatch 2, the AI can be seen making pre-match recommendations for character choice, and then explaining how the player got smoked so badly and suggesting a switch to a different character. The second example, in Minecraft, is more of a straight-up tutorial, except the player is asking the AI what to do, and the AI responds with step-by-step instructions on how to build a house by punching a tree. Much like Sony's AI Aloy creepshow earlier this week, these demonstrations are early-stage work: "Explorations and proof of concepts," Kardar says in the video. "But what is really cool about them is they help us understand what we need to do on the platform. "[With] Overwatch 2, what we really explored was, what does it take to reach that threshold of feeling successful? And I love that term, because your level of feeling successful is different [from] my level of feeling successful. And so in that, we explored some scenarios like assistance, like on team composition, what could you do, right? And then, maybe post-match, kind of coaching you and doing it in the down period." Beyond that sort of in-game assistance, Copilot for Gaming will supposedly also help "connect you with families and communities," tell you when your friends are doing things online, recommend new games to play so you don't have to talk to actual people whose opinions you might value, and chat with and trash-talk you, if that's what you're into. Kardar said it's vital that Copilot for Gaming not be "intrusive," and players will have full control over how, or if, they interact with it. I'm a little bit torn on the whole thing, personally. In some ways it's really not all that far removed from popping over to GameFAQs, or using a coupon that came in the game box to order a guide book: An evolution of technology that accomplishes an essentially unchanging goal. Mostly, though, I think it sounds awful, in the way that most AI stuff sounds awful. What are we getting out of all this that we don't already have, and at what cost, beyond parallel growth in convenience and -- pleasant promises about staying "connected" notwithstanding -- isolation from the real world? Eh, maybe I'm not all that torn on it after all. A rollout date for Copilot for Gaming hasn't been announced yet, but it will be available for Xbox Insiders on mobile platforms, before eventually being rolled out to consoles and PC -- assuming the AI bubble doesn't pop first, I suppose.

Copilot for Gaming is a new 'AI-driven sidekick' and companion for Xbox gamers

TL;DR: Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming is an AI-driven assistant designed to enhance the gaming experience by offering personalized recommendations, game installation, and in-game advice. Initially available to Xbox Insiders on mobile, it aims to assist players with game setup and coaching. Similar AI tools are being developed by NVIDIA and AMD. Microsoft describes Copilot for Gaming as an "AI-driven sidekick" designed to be your "personalized gaming companion" that will offer Xbox support, recommend games, install them for you, and even show up in-game to provide advice and tips. Microsoft notes, "Xbox Insiders can get an early preview of Copilot for Gaming on mobile soon." Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming demonstrations are 'product concepts only.' In a recent episode of the Official Xbox Podcast, Xbox Corporate Vice President of Gaming AI Fatima Kardar, joined by Vice President of Next Generation Jason Ronald, formally introduced Copilot for Gaming and showcased concept videos of it in action in Overwatch 2 and Minecraft. The demos show an unnamed player communicating with Copilot for Gaming using natural language. In Overwatch 2, the AI answers questions about what hero to choose, provides breakdowns of recent play, and gives advice based on historical data that includes the player's skill and abilities. As a proof of concept, it's an interesting demonstration however having the player talk to AI instead of their teammates is a little weird. In Minecraft, we see how interacting with Copilot for Gaming might look for a new player. The AI answers questions on what to do and where to go based on its knowledge of the game, its settings, and what's happening on screen. Check it out in the video above. "Copilot for Gaming is built on three principles: capability, adaptability, and personalization," Jeff Rubenstein, Director of Xbox Editorial writes in the Xbox Wire post. "It is designed to assist players in various ways, from personalized game recommendations and seamless game setup, to helpful coaching and maintaining connections with friends." AI assistants for gaming is a relatively new thing. With Copilot for Gaming, the most prominent players in the industry are actively developing tools to help gamers with their systems, game libraries, and in-game walkthrough-style help. NVIDIA is currently working on Project G-Assist which shares many similarities with Copilot for Gaming. At the same time, AMD has recently integrated AI chat and support into its Adrenalin Software for Radeon gamers that have purchased a new RDNA 4 GPU with advanced capabilities. With Copilot for Gaming coming to mobile-first, the assumption is that it will be a cloud-based approach that will become part of the Xbox App. It'll be interesting to see how it gets integrated into the console space, specifically with the Xbox Series X|S consoles.

Xbox's Copilot for Gaming AI will help you win more games

Microsoft will begin testing its optional AI-powered gaming assistant, Copilot for Gaming, starting in April, as announced on the Official Xbox Podcast. This assistant aims to provide game recommendations and enhance player skills for Xbox users. Copilot for Gaming is designed to help players save time and improve their gaming experience by simplifying tasks such as downloading and updating games. It will also offer hints for side quests that players might overlook. Initially, Copilot will function as a second-screen companion via the Xbox mobile app, with interested users able to sign up for early access through the Xbox Insider program. "It has to be personalized to you the way that you like to play and it should be able to help you get further in gaming, be your companion, and help connect you with families and communities," said Fatima Kardar, Xbox corporate vice president of Gaming AI. Kardar, who is relatively new to gaming, noted that Copilot assists her in finding game recommendations, which is beneficial given her lack of familiarity with the latest releases. Jason Ronald, vice president of next generation at Xbox, highlighted that Copilot can suggest suitable cars for players in racing games, depending on their individual play style. During the podcast, a demonstration showcased Copilot's ability to help players choose heroes in Overwatch 2 that could counter their opponents effectively. Kardar emphasized that gaming is unique among media forms in that it can leave players feeling stuck. Thus, Copilot is intended to assist gamers in progressing through their games without being intrusive, as the AI will adapt to each player's preferences. This testing phase occurs as Microsoft intensifies its focus on AI technologies. Following the 2022 launch of ChatGPT, Microsoft entered into a multibillion-dollar agreement with OpenAI, which led to the development of Copilot as an AI assistant in Windows. AI capabilities have since permeated various Microsoft offerings, including applications such as PowerPoint and Azure. Despite this push towards AI, the video game industry has faced significant layoffs, including within Microsoft's ranks. There are concerns among developers that AI could potentially replace software developers. Recently, Microsoft introduced Muse, an AI model designed for gameplay ideation, although some developers view this technology as a cost-reduction tool rather than a sought-after innovation. Microsoft clarified that Copilot for Gaming will allow players to retain control, with AI assistance serving as an additive feature. The podcast also indicated that the Xbox Play Anywhere program, which enables gamers to access their titles on either console or PC, has been expanded to include 1,000 games.

Xbox Is Experimenting With An AI Clippy For Gaming To Help Players Out

Members of the Xbox Insiders program will soon have access to Copilot for Gaming on mobile, a tool aimed at streamlining the process of playing games and minimizing the moments that people spend confused by their hardware or the games that run on it. It's an interesting idea that currently seems like more trouble than it's worth. Microsoft announced Copilot in-game assistance over on the Xbox Wire blog on Thursday and briefly showed how it will work in the latest episode of the Official Xbox Podcast. The examples included an AI voice telling a player who to pick in Overwatch 2 and a chatbot explaining how to craft wood planks in Minecraft. The program also offered feedback on past in-game failures in Age of Empires and could be used to pull up strategy guides if the player remained stuck. Perhaps the silliest use case presented in the podcast was telling the Copilot AI to install a game which, if communicating with Copilot via text at least, would seemingly require several more taps and clicks than just doing that manually (a process that already takes only seconds on mobile). The YouTube page is full of people asking why AI needs to be part of the experience at all. Fortunately, Microsoft has gone to great lengths to make clear that the feature is completely optional and can be turned off entirely. "It's not just about AI showing up to help you, it's about AI showing up at the right moment," Microsoft gaming AI VP Fatima Kardar said during the podcast. "We really have to think about the experience we've built, it cannot be intrusive." I can actually see a lot of potential use cases for an Xbox AI agent but it would have to go well beyond the demoed version, which looks more like an iteration of Clippy from Microsoft Word giving obvious and unhelpful advice rather than actually doing stuff for me. Instead of telling me how to do a thing in a game, maybe it could just do it for me, like a more experienced friend would if they were playing with me. Maybe the Copilot can show my kid how to grow food to keep his workers from starving during the winter in Overthrown instead of him asking me every five minutes. The use cases quickly snowball from there, however, and probably not in a direction Microsoft wants. Why stop at helping me control my console more easily or bypass a frustrating part of a game? Why not have the Xbox Copilot do my dailies for me and grind random encounters in my favorite JRPG while I scroll TikTok? Let the AI grind the battle pass and pop achievements. One reason not to do that might be that I don't want Copilot spying on me and my family. Or, if it eventually becomes a paid service like it will presumably have to be in order to be financially sustainable, even the cheevos it could earn for me wouldn't be worth it. We'll see how useful, frightening, or silly the tool ends up being once it's out. In the meantime, Microsoft also revealed that over 1,000 games like Balatro are now Play Anywhere between Xbox and PC, and the number is expected to keep rising. The program is reportedly part of a larger initiative to make the Xbox experience seamless across multiple devices, something that sounds much more useful than AI linking me to Minecraft recipes.

Microsoft wants to use AI to make you a better gamer - Phandroid

We're sure that we've all played games and gotten frustrated at how bad we are at it. This is because sometimes there are certain strategies we overlook, which is why online guides exist for a reason. However, Microsoft wants to save you the time by using AI to make you a better gamer with Copilot for Gaming. During the Official Xbox podcast, Xbox Corporate Vice President of Gaming AI, Fatima Kardar announced a new AI-powered tool for gamers: Copilot for Gaming. Basically, this tool leverages AI to allow players to ask it questions in a game to get some tips on how to improve. For example, if there's a particularly hard boss that you are struggling to beat, you can ask the AI for tips on how to beat it. It can also tell players what to do with resources they've gathered, like wood in Minecraft. Copilot for Gaming can even make suggestions on games like Overwatch 2 and advice you on which heroes to pick to make a better team composition. It sounds like it could be pretty cool, but don't hold your breath for it just yet. According to Microsoft, they are planning to roll it out to Xbox Insiders first and it will only be available on mobile. However, the company does plan to eventually expand it to cover more devices in the future.

Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming Will Bring In-Game Assistance to Xbox Gamers

Copilot for Gaming is designed to offer in-game contextual information Microsoft is working on Copilot for Gaming, a new AI-powered assistant for Xbox gamers. The Redmond, Washington-based company said in a recent blog post that its upcoming assistant will save gamers' time by helping them find tutorials and other in-game assistance. Copilot for Gaming can also understand natural language commands to install (or update) games, while providing players with a recap of their progress. Microsoft says the feature will initially be available on smartphones, and Xbox Insiders will get early access to Copilot for Gaming. According to Xbox Corporate Vice President of Gaming AI, Fatima Kardar, Copilot for Gaming is an AI-powered gaming assistant for gamers. It can help gamers set up games on their Xbox, recommend new titles, help them with in-game assistance, or make social connections. It will offer gamers a tailored experience, based on their preferences and habits, Kardar said. A proof of concept for Copilot for Gaming in Minecraft Photo Credit: Microsoft/ Xbox With the upcoming Copilot for Gaming feature, gamers will be able to use natural language commands -- such as "I want to get back into Age of Empires, can you install it?" -- and the assistant will start downloading the game to the user's Xbox gaming console. Players can also get a recap of their progress in a particular game, or ask the AI assistant to check for game updates. Once it is released, Copilot for Gaming will offer contextual assistance when a gamer needs help, based on what they're going at the time. "It's not just about AI showing up to help you, it's about AI showing up at the right moment. We really have to think about the experience we've built, it cannot be intrusive," Kardar said. Gamers will have control over how the AI assistant works, and the feature will be optional, according to the company. It will first be available on mobile, via the Xbox Insider Program, before it expands to other devices. Jason Ronald, Microsoft's Vice President of Next Generation, said that over 1,000 games now offer support for Xbox Play Anywhere. Players can access a title bought once on one platform (Xbox) on their Windows PC, without additional purchases. Xbox Play Anywhere games "get over 20 percent more gameplay" compared to other titles, according to Ronald. These games also offer additional benefits for gamers, such as the ability to see and sync Xbox game progress and saves, as well as in-game achievements on their PC, and vice versa.

Xbox's new gaming AI aims to "help you get good" at everything from Overwatch 2 to Minecraft by watching you play and giving you advice

This version of Copilot could tell you why you suck in Overwatch 2: "Great picks with your ultimate, but diving straight into Ramattra was a death sentence" Microsoft's Copilot generative AI chatbot is coming to Xbox as an AI assistant tool. The tool is coming soon in beta form for Xbox Insiders on mobile, but a series of proof of concept demonstrations suggests that Xbox intends to integrate Copilot on console and PC to give you tips, reminders of what you were doing last time you played, and recommendations on new games. To quote the Xbox Wire announcement on all this, it "aims to save you time, [and] help you get good." This gaming Copilot is going out in beta first because Microsoft wants to be sure to get it right, according to corporate VP of gaming AI Fatima Kardar. "We really don't want to mess up the gaming experience," Kardar says in a new episode of the Xbox podcast. "So we have to be very cautious about it, which means we put things out there. We let people give us feedback, try it out, see what resonates, and build from that. I feel that's going to be very important. It does make us uncomfortable. It makes me uncomfortable. I keep getting reminded that people expect a lot from the Xbox brand and that is what keeps me up at night." That podcast also shows a few video examples of what a gaming Copilot might be able to do, and while Xbox has slapped "proof of concept only" warnings all over these clips, noting that they're all very much work-in-progress ideas, they do offer some insight into what this all might look like in practice. In one instance, we see a player returning to Age of Empires 4 after some time away by asking Copilot to reinstall the game from the Xbox app. Once in-game, the AI reminds the player what happened last time they were playing: they "ventured out to take the fight to the Franks, but... let's just say it didn't go as planned." Asked how best to take on a special siege tower, the AI then offers to pull up "a quick strategy guide." In another example, an Overwatch 2 player is about to start a match when he finds somebody else has already chosen his main, Echo. "Echo's taken," the AI says, "but Cassidy would be a solid pick with this team his mid-range hit scan, and Mercy's damage boost will work great on Elio's ruins. Plus you've done great with him on this map before." A bit later, the Overwatch 2 map picks up with this player having deployed Cassidy's ult only to get gunned down pretty quickly afterward. "You stayed in the fight too long after your teammates were down," the AI explains. "Great picks with your ultimate, but diving straight into Ramattra was a death sentence." Then there's a Minecraft example, where the AI guides a player new to the game to those crucial first steps: punching trees, getting to the crafting menu, and figuring out the patterns to build basic tools. Later on, the AI refuses to give an answer because the player doesn't have cheats enabled - so he goes into the menu, turns them on, and asks where to find ore. The AI then points him to a coal deposit he wandered past earlier in the sessions. All this is designed to be unobtrusive, Kardar explains, so if you never want to see Copilot in-game you don't have to. If this all actually works beyond the proof of concept, seeing the AI directly respond to in-game activity and offer dynamic advice on the fly is genuinely pretty impressive, but there is, of course, the question of how all this info is going to be sourced. You could certainly see a situation where the AI might hit a guide like, say, our explainer on how to get the Monster Hunter Wilds Sharp Fang for armor crafting and either pull out the wrong information, plagiarize it without citing the source, or both. "We have to really go back to the source," Kardar explains. "There's plenty of information on the Internet about games, [but] not all of that is accurate - or it was accurate and goes out of date. So for us It's very important that we have to partner with game studios as well as other content creators, when you think of guides. Not only do we want to help bring their right information to players, we want to partner with them and make sure that [if] they've put in the work, they should be able to benefit from that as well. So we're also looking at what it means to refer back to the content creators." It's a bit distressing that the details of how the original guide material might be sourced are still so vague even as it's about to hit beta and get into players' hands. But that's always been the grand criticism of generative AI, and so far AI makers have only paid lip service to those concerns. Either way, it seems we'll be finding out what AI can do for gaming sooner rather than later.

Microsoft's AI will help players make gaming a smoother ride

Microsoft's gaming boss Phil Spencer has announced via Bluesky that they have plans to utilize their AI Copilot to assist gamers in the future. It will first be launched for mobiles, but seems to be on its way as a comprehensive service for every Xbox gamer. The idea is that Copilot will make sure to remove any problems with gaming by providing relevant gaming tips, updating games you actually want to play, fixing settings you usually prefer (those who play with an inverted camera or want subtitles turned on can, for example, avoid changing this in each new title) and providing better search results. Copilot will also act as an assistant while you play and can help if it notices that you are stuck, doing something in the wrong way, can't handle a boss, have missed important information, give a quick summary of what happened in games you have taken a break from or similar. The service will first be released to those who are members of the Xbox Insiders program, but often it doesn't take more than a few months before it becomes available to everyone. However this seems to be a more extensive and groundbreaking feature, so we suspect there's a possibility we may have to wait a little longer than that. If you want to know more about Copilot for Xbox, we recommend the Official Xbox Podcast, which has an interesting deep dive with some thought-provoking ideas, as well as the summary on Xbox Wire.

Microsoft Will Soon Integrate its Copilot AI Into the Xbox App -- and Eventually Into Your Xbox Games - IGN

As a part of Microsoft's ongoing efforts to implement artificial intelligence into basically everything, the company is preparing to introduce its AI Copilot into your Xbox experience to give you gaming advice, help you remember where you left off last time you played, and perform other tasks. Announced today, Copilot for gaming will be rolled out for Xbox Insiders through the Xbox mobile app sometime soon for testing. If you're not already aware, Copilot is Microsoft's existing AI chatbot (that replaced Cortana in 2023) that's already integrated into Windows. The gaming version will have a handful of features at launch. You can ask it to install games on your Xbox for you (a process you can already do now just by pushing a single button on the app), and you can also ask it about your play history (in case you forgot what you were doing last time you played), achievements, library, or for a recommendation of what to play next. You'll also be able to speak to Copilot for Gaming directly on the Xbox app while you're playing, and it will serve you answers in the same way Copilot currently does when asked questions via Windows. Probably the biggest use-cases touted by Microsoft available at launch is Copilot as a gaming assistant. You can already ask Copilot questions about games any time on PC, such as how to beat a boss or solve a puzzle, and it will source answers via Bing from various online guides, websites, wikis, and forums. Soon, you'll also be able to ask it those same questions on the Xbox app. "Our goal is to have Copilot for Gaming source the most accurate game knowledge -- so we are working with game studios to make sure the information Copilot surfaces reflects their vision, and Copilot will refer players back to the original source of the information." Unshockingly, Microsoft does not intend to limit itself to just these Copilot functions. In a press briefing, Microsoft spokespeople discussed other future possibilities for Copilot in video games, including as a walkthrough assistant to explain basic game functions, remember where items where left in a game, or tell you where to find new ones, or as a helper in competitive games that could offer strategy suggestions and tips in real-time to counter opponents' moves, or explain how and why an engagement unfolded the way it did. Though it was emphasized that these were both just ideas they were toying with, the presentation made clear that Microsoft is insistant on finding ways to integrate Copilot closely with regular Xbox gameplay. And Microsoft confirmed to me that it will eventually work with not just first-party studios, but third-party studios for integration into their games as well. With that in mind, I asked Microsoft if Copilot gaming would be opt in or opt out of use, or if users could opt out of having their data used to train it. The answer is that yes, Xbox Insiders can opt out during the preview, but the door was left open for Copilot to be mandatory in the future. Here's what a spokesperson said: "During this preview on mobile, players will be able to decide how and when they want to interact with Copilot for Gaming, whether it has access to their conversation history, and what it does on their behalf. "As we preview and test Copilot for Gaming with players early, we will continue to be transparent about what data we collect, how we use it, and the choices players have around sharing their personal data." IGN understands that Copilot is not being limited to just player-focused usage, and that Microsoft will be providing an overview on plans for developer use in a session at the Game Developers Conference on Monday next week.