Microsoft Build 2025 LIVE: AI, Windows 11 and Surface news as it happens
Microsoft's yearly developer get-together is kicking off this week
Microsoft Build 2025 is nigh, and I'm going to be there this week covering it live in Seattle.
This could be a big deal because Build is the company's annual conference for developers, and I expect AI to be the star of the show.
Between Microsoft bringing DeepSeek R1 models to Windows 11 Copilot+ PCs and Microsoft 365 Copilot debuting new research tools for work. it's clear AI remains a key priority for the company's software and services. Factor in the fact that Windows 10 will hit end-of-life this October and I think there's a very good chance AI in Windows 11 will dominate the conversation around Build.
There's also a chance I may also be among the first in the world to go hands-on with new hardware from Microsoft, as the company unveiled new smaller, cheaper Surface Pro and Surface Laptop devices earlier this month.
I'm hoping that's not the end of the story, either, as I'd love to see the company unveil a sequel to 2023's Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 2.
But we'll have to wait and see if there's any more hardware surprises in store for us during the main event: Microsoft's Build 2025 keynote kicks off 12PM ET/9AM PT Monday, May 19!
You can stream the keynote live via Microsoft's YouTube channel (embedded above) or just follow along with our liveblog as we report all the most interesting details as they happen.
LIVE: LATEST UPDATES
Phone Link panel rolling out to Windows 11
Here's a small nugget of news ahead of Build kicking off today — Microsoft is making it easier to interact with your Android phone in Windows 11 by rolling out a dedicated Phone Link panel to the start menu.
Users will be able to find it on the right of the start menu with the panel showing things like your device's connection status and battery level. You'll also find buttons for direct access to messages, call history and image gallery.
If you're unfamiliar with Phone Link, it will even mirror your Android device's screen to your PC. Nice!
A possible new Microsoft-developed Copilot model
There have been some rumors that Microsoft is working on its own AI models to use in Copilot, rather than using those from ChatGPT-creator OpenAI. Currently, Copilot is built on OpenAI's GPT-4 model, so if Microsoft can break away from that — and show its own models are a compelling rival to OpenAI — the AI race will have taken another interesting turn.
Microsoft has invested up to $13 billion in OpenAI in a profit-share agreement and according to some reports, the latter is currently renegotiating the agreement ahead of plans to someday launch its IPO.
Microsoft therefore would probably do well to move its reliance away from OpenAI and develop its own models. We've already seen the Phi-4 model family announced at the start of this month.
Microsoft's new Surface devices
Microsoft's Surface devices have dwindled a little in recent years, but the company's in-house laptops and hybrid 2-in-1s are still something of a head-turner. Redmond revealed details about its new Surface PCs earlier this month.
We've got a new 12-inch Surface Pro and a 13-inch Surface Laptop. They're both slightly smaller, lighter and less powerful than last year's models, but the upshot is they should last longer on a charge thanks to their lowered specs.
I guess if there's a silver lining here, it's that in a world of tariffs and rising prices, the new 2025 Surface Laptop 7 (13-inch) starts at $100 cheaper than the least expensive Surface Laptop 7 (13.8-inch). So, there's that.
Copilot agents
Back in September, Microsoft unveiled Copilot agents, which are basically AI assistants that can function autonomously to streamline various processes for you. The shift to agentic AI is probably going to be the next big thing for the industry and Microsoft will probably reveal more about how this is going to work at Build.
Agents are specialized and work within Microsoft 365 Copilot to organize and execute tasks on behalf of the user. So, you may have one agent tasked with searching out the right vacation location while another is scouring through archive documents as part of a research project you need to get done.
Microsoft has said users can @ mention the agent as you would any other teammate to ask questions and get real-time answers.
Will we hear about the Xbox handheld?
I'm very skeptical that Microsoft will reveal anything about its forthcoming Xbox handheld at Build this year. We know the device is currently in development with Asus but early rumors suggest Microsoft isn't doing any more than providing the Xbox UI.
Given how popular handheld gaming is right now, it's a safe way for Microsoft to experiment with Xbox without having to commit too many resources. Build is likely to be far more focused on Windows and Surface hardware than Xbox.
Still... considering Computex 2025 is also happening right now and there's likely to be a ton of cool handhelds breaking cover at that show, it would be nice if Microsoft could give us just a little tease at its own event...
What to expect from the keynote?
Microsoft Build will kick of this year with a two-hour keynote from CEO Satya Nadella and other execs discussing all the latest features and services Microsoft has been working on. And, spoiler alert, expect AI to be mentioned a lot.
Microsoft has spent the last year building out Copilot and this is where we'll hopefully see new features finally rolling out after spending several months in the preview stage. I'm expecting Copilot to be even further baked into Windows 11, giving users things like semantic search in areas of the operating system like Settings and File Explorer.
The keynote will kick off today (May 19) at 12PM ET/9AM PT/5pm BST
