With major leadership shakeups and rumors of studio closures, the future of XBOX inside Microsoft suddenly looks uncertain. Is this the beginning of a Game Pass overhaul, or could XBOX face an outright split from the company? Plus, PowerToys 0.100 (yes, point one hundred) arrives with so many improvements. And the Windows Insider program is leaving even seasoned users scratching their heads over Microsoft's so-called "simplification."

Windows

• Windows Insider Program: Microsoft releases a record 7 builds to the allegedly simpler Insider Program
• You can't tell the players without a program
• Experimental: Less disruptive Windows Update, Windows Search improvements
• Beta 26H1: Screen tint
• Beta 25H2: Screen tint, quieter Widgets, Magnifier zoom controls
• Release Preview 25H2: Screen tint, quieter Widgets, Magnifier zoom controls, Bluetooth connectivity improvements
• All (?) get Voice access and Voice typing improvements, and new right-click Touchpad settings
• Good God, Microsoft

Hardware

• Microsoft announces Snapdragon X2-based Surface Laptop 8 and Surface Laptop 13 and the prices are eye-watering
• Samsung announces Snapdragon X2-based Galaxy Book6 Edge and, yes, the prices are eye-watering
• The component crisis is a disaster but limitations are driving innovation, as they always have
• Google releases Android 17 alongside a new Pixel Drop, setting the stage for Googlebooks

Software

• Microsoft Edge to follow Chrome to a two-week development schedule because we all love updating our web browsers
• Mozilla releases Firefox 152 and a new roadmap for the browser

AI

• FINALLY AN AI-FREE WEEK

XBOX and gaming

• Fear & loathing at XBOX! The Microsoft fiscal year ends in two weeks, and big changes are coming
• XBOX leadership set to reveal "hard truths" that will absolutely include layoffs and studio and game closures
• Microsoft is looking at all options for XBOX, including a spin-off
• XBOX Studios CEO and chief of staff announce their departures ahead of expected layoffs
• XBOX reportedly closing Ninja Theory, makers of the Hellblade games
• Compulsion Games is likely on the chopping block too
• XBOX is coming to Gamescon this year
• Xbox June Update arrives with new boot animation, more while Microsoft continues testing minor UX changes in the Insider Program
• COD: Vanguard, EA Sports FC 26 and more coming to Game Pass in the second half of June
• Rockstar Games is giving free GTA V upgrades to Xbox One and PS4 players

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: Don't doomscroll, learnscroll instead
• App pick of the week: PowerToys 0.100
• RunAs Radio this week: 47 Day Certificates with Todd Gardner
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Thornæs Kagerup

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

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If you think code is safe from automation, think again. This week's discussion tackles why the rise of vibe coding and AI-powered tools could upend long-held beliefs about software development, with even seasoned pros rethinking their roles. Also, a new C++ documentary is worth watching!

Windows

• After a weekend of Build session viewing, two big takeaways!
• Vibe coding native Windows apps and a new reactive dev model for WinUI will help to make modern app dev easier for everyone
• A new theory emerges: The real reason Microsoft is fixing Windows 11 is that it needs this foundation for a future of hybrid AI agents. And hybrid means more than just local + cloud.
• Patch Tuesday is here! As promised, Microsoft fixed a record number of security issues thanks to AI
• 24H2/25H2: Shared audio, more NPU in Task Manager, multi-app camera support, user folder name choice in OOBE, more
• 26H1: Xbox Mode, Drop tray, etc.
• Windows Insider Program: New 26H1 Beta channel added for some reason
• Dell now sells a Windows Hello ESS-compatible wired mouse

AI

• WWDC 2026: Apple announced vibe-coding advances for normal users (Safari extensions) and developers (Xcode). Paul used Xcode and Claude Code to create a full-featured Markdown editor app in about 12-15 minutes.
• Google drops the price of AI Plus plan to $4.99 per month, raises storage to 400 GB and announces new NotebookLM capabilities
• Proton Drive is coming to Linux, has a new SDK, and now has a new CLI too. We're going to need a CLI section in the show notes.

XBOX and gaming

• Microsoft Games Showcase: It needed to be a big day for Xbox and it was
• Microsoft showed off Halo: Campaign Evolved, Gears of War E-Day, Fable, and a lot more
• Some games will be console-exclusive in the future, starting with the new Gears
• Microsoft will sell a limited edition Xbox Series X25 later this year
• Xbox leadership is exploring new business models for the next console - Game Pass lost "millions" of subscribers after last year's price hikes
• Xbox Insider update adds a new way to discover mutual friends, more
• Valve says the Steam Machine and Steam Frame will ship this summer

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: Windows 11 Field Guide is being updated to 2026 edition
• App pick of the week: Brave Origin
• RunAs Radio this week: How Machine Learning Fails with Megan Robertson
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Thy Bøg

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

Download or subscribe to Windows Weekly at https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly

Check out Paul's blog at thurrott.com

The Windows Weekly theme music is courtesy of Carl Franklin.

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Build 2026 is underway in San Francisco this week, and it started with a big, overly-long keynote as always. And Computex is this week, too. There's a lot going on, and some of it is fascinating. Plus, WWDC is next week because you cannot relax. Also, Microsoft GA's WinApp CLI, announces the Windows Platform Skills plug-in for native app creation, and you're not going to believe what Paul did next. OK, you will believe it

Build + Computex = OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD

• NVIDIA finally announces Arm-based N1X as the RTX Spark
• RTX Spark is an Arm-based portable workstation chip for Windows 11
• Microsoft announces Surface Laptop Ultra - It and other RTX Spark-based PCs will appear in late 2026
• Some of this leaked earlier, including a lower-end N1 chipset
• Microsoft continues to optimize and evolve Windows 11 for developers
• Windows Developer Configuration, Windows Developer Skills + WinApp CLI, Terminal, more Linux, and more on-device ("unmetered") AI - Tied to this, Copilot+ PC features are coming to more PCs, with CPU/GPU support - this, plus the RTX Spark stuff hints at answers to some obvious questions but there's nothing concrete from Microsoft
• Microsoft Edge is getting three new on-AI features
• Scout is a personal work agent powered by OpenClaw
• GitHub Copilot app arrives on desktop for your agentic coding and management needs
• Microsoft AI announces seven new foundation models
• Stevie Bathiche is back, baby! And he's talking about those AI app structures and how they've led to Project Solara

Windows

• Microsoft discusses the progress it's made on Windows 11 pain points
• You can now test the new Start menu in Experimental - Paul did so along with the new Taskbar
• Qualcomm announces low-cost Snapdragon C for $300+ PCs to take on MacBook Neo
• And Acer is the first to announce a Snapdragon C laptop
• New Surface Pro with Snapdragon X2 leaks for June release (!)
• Dell XPS 13 is coming soon with Intel Wildcat (also to take on MacBook Neo)
• Dell revenues are through the roof, but not because of PCs
• HP revenues are up, and it is because of PCs

AI and dev

• Anthropic gets a new valuation exceeding OpenAI and then it files for an IPO
• OpenAI adjusts GPT5.5-Instant for less sucking-up and releases computer use in Codex on Windows
• Flutter takes the lead on Flutter desktop development

XBOX and gaming

• Asha Sharma says you can't please everyone and then immediately jumps the shark trying to please everyone
• XBOX delays Fable reboot because of GTA VI
• New titles coming to Game Pass in early June across platforms
• XBOX starts early testing of new console features
• ASUS announces ROG Xbox Ally X20 with OLED display and XReal R1 glasses
• Intel announces Arc G-series for gaming handhelds
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 is next and it's the COD we've been begging for

Tips and picks

• Tip of the week: Now you can vibe code a native Windows app from the CLI
• App pick of the week: iA Writer
• RunAs Radio this week: Data API Builder and SQL MVP with Jerry Nixon
• Brown liquor pick of the week: Old Malt Casking of Longmorn 20

These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/windows-weekly/episodes/986

Hosts: Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott, and Richard Campbell

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