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It might not get the same kind of attention as Google and Apple, but Microsoft is still one of the biggest and most powerful tech companies operating today. It runs Azure, one of the biggest cloud computing services, and maintains Windows 11 and the whole Office suite of software. It also makes plenty of Surface hardware and has a whole slew of gaming products, including the Xbox Series X. But the company is ever expanding — building new hardware, acquiring new game studios, and making sure that even if Microsoft doesn't run your phone, it can touch plenty of the apps on it.

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Microsoft says Russian hackers stole source code after spying on its executives

Microsoft’s nation-state security incident continues to be a headache for the company.

Microsoft confirms Surface and Windows AI event for March 21st

Surface Pro 10 and Surface Laptop 6 refreshes are set to be unveiled later this month.

“The bundles, they are like children to me.”

Larry Hryb, aka “Major Nelson,” did a little reminiscing on Threads this week, posting videos from his time with Microsoft’s Xbox division, which he departed from back in December.

One video is him running down features of the original incarnation of Xbox Live, but I’m more interested in this parody of defunct electronics store Crazy Eddie’s commercials — something the company did regularly.


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If you play Minecraft through the Xbox app on PC, don’t update the game.

Mojang has just posted a warning that says you could lose all your worlds if you download the latest Minecraft update through the Xbox app.

To get around the issue, Microsoft says to run the Gaming Services Repair Tool for PC and then install the update. You can find more information about how to do this here.


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Copilot upgrade.

Windows Central points out that a switch to GPT-4 Turbo on the free tier of Microsoft’s AI assistant means searches on Copilot will be more current, and answers can be more thought out. GPT-4 Turbo was trained on data until April 2023 and can understand more complex questions.

However, for those who prefer the older model, Pro accounts can toggle between GPT-4 Turbo and GPT-4.


Microsoft Paint is getting better pencil, brushes, and eraser sizes.

Microsoft is bringing a new size slider to its pencil, brushes, and eraser tools in Paint. This will let you pick a custom size, much like you’d find in more advanced image editing tools like Photoshop. These new options are in testing today, alongside some improvements to the new layers feature inside Microsoft Paint. Microsoft has been on a roll lately, updating Paint with layers, AI features, and much more.


The new Paint brush sizes.
The new Paint brush sizes.
Image: Microsoft
The “new” Threads desktop app is available for Windows PCs.

Yes, Windows users can get the Threads app Mark Zuckerberg is showing here from the Microsoft Store

But once it’s installed, you’ll get the same desktop web app experience (loaded in Microsoft’s Edge web browser) that we’ve had access to since August.


1Password is making it easier to log into your accounts on Windows.

Instead of having to go into a separate authentication app to get your 2FA code and then manually type it in, Auto-Type via Quick Access now copies the code to the clipboard for you.

Other experimental features in 1Password include setting default payment details, Touch ID browser integration for Mac, a unified password vault, and a new home tab that will show PIN numbers and other account log-in details based on your location or nearby items.

You can access some of these new features via the Labs tab, while others are available to everyone.


A screenshot of 1Password’s user-interface on macOS.
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Apple, Google, Mozilla, and Microsoft teamed up on a new web browser benchmark test.

Gecko (Firefox), Blink (Chrome / Edge), and WebKit (Safari) are the engines behind most web browsers, and the developers who make them have collaborated on a new benchmark to measure performance with browsing and web apps.

Announced in December 2022 and already used to optimize the browser engines listed above, Speedometer 3.0 is now available to test “key scenarios” like rendering a news site — if that’s the kind of thing you enjoy doing.

Correction March 11th, 4:29PM ET: An earlier version of this post incorrectly swapped the browser engines for Chrome and Firefox, it has been correct. We regret the error.


Screenshot of Speedometer 3.0 browser benchmark showing a simulated news site titled The Daily Broadcast, with placeholder text articles and blank spaces for images.
The Daily Broadcast, a test news site browsers render as part of the Speedometer 3.0 test.
Image: WebKit.org
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The European Commission breached EU privacy rules when using Microsoft 365.

A three-year probe has revealed that the European Commission’s use of Microsoft software breached strict EU privacy rules, and limits on how personal data is transferred out of the EU. Reuters reports that the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) found that “in its contract with Microsoft, the Commission did not sufficiently specify what types of personal data are to be collected and for which explicit and specified purposes when using Microsoft 365.”


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Microsoft blocks terms that could let Copilot generate controversial images.

Blocked terms include “pro choice” and “pro life,” CNBC reported on Friday. The company made changes after one of its engineers complained to the Federal Trade Commission about the safety of its DALLE-3-powered Copilot Designer AI image generator.

Recently, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella promised to improve Copilot’s guardrails after explicit, Copilot-created images of Taylor Swift spread on X in January.


Xbox PC games arrive on Boosteroid.

The first batch of Xbox PC games are arriving on Boosteroid today, a cloud gaming service. Microsoft signed a deal with Boosteroid as part of its efforts to appease regulators for its Activision Blizzard acquisition. You’ll be able to play titles like DeathloopDishonoredDishonored 2Dishonored: Death of The Outsider, Gears 5, Gears TacticsGhostwire: Tokyo, and Pentiment. You can either purchase from the Microsoft Store or use a PC Game Pass subscription to stream these games through Boosteroid.


Image: Microsoft
The original S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games are coming to Xbox.

A new S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Trilogy is launching on Xbox One and Xbox Series X /X today, bringing the trio of classic PC games to Microsoft’s Xbox consoles. That includes Shadow of ChernobylClear Sky, and Call of Pripyat. The bundle is available for $39.99 on the Microsoft Store.


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Watch Microsoft’s Xbox Partner Preview event here.

The Xbox Partner Preview event kicks off at 10AM PT / 1PM ET / 6PM UK today. Microsoft is promising its 30-minute broadcast will include “more than a dozen new trailers,” including games from publishers like Capcom, Nexon, and EA. The event will be broadcast on Twitch and YouTube, and you can watch along below.


Microsoft’s small math AI model does math better than the big boys.

Microsoft found that small language models can exceed the performance of much larger ones when trained to specialize in a single area. Researchers fine-tuned the Mistral 7B model to create Orca-Math, an SLM that solved grade school math problems better, at 86.8 percent, than models like Llama 2, GPT-3.5, and Gemini Pro — even though it ingests significantly less data.

The company was rumored to build a team entirely focused on creating SLMs (AI models that use less computing power), which would be suited for phones and laptops.


Bar graph showing Orca-Math outperforming other large language models.
Graph comparing Orca-Math’s performance in solving grade school math problems.
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Microsoft announces a new Xbox Partner Preview event.

Microsoft is holding an Xbox Partner Preview event on Wednesday. The 30-minute broadcast will include “more than a dozen new trailers,” for new and upcoming games from publishers like Capcom, Nexon, EA, and others. Tales of Kenzera: Zau, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, and The First Berserker: Khazan will all be part of the preview. The event will be broadcast on Twitch and YouTube on March 6th at 10AM PT / 1PM ET / 6PM UK.


Image: Microsoft
This Xbox lives in a pineapple under the sea.

Microsoft is selling a limited edition SpongeBob SquarePants Xbox Series X console later this week. The “limited supply” console will be available at Best Buy on March 7th, priced at $699. It comes with a digital download of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 and a custom Xbox controller featuring SpongeBob, Squidward, Gary, and Mr. Krabs. Microsoft usually creates custom consoles for giveaways, so this is a rare opportunity to actually buy a custom Xbox Series X for the inflated price of $699.


The limited edition SpongeBob Xbox is $699.
The limited edition SpongeBob Xbox is $699.
Image: Microsoft
Microsoft yanks Edge browser update after users report crashes.

The Edge 122.0.2365.63 browser update Microsoft released yesterday is causing a stir. Users encountered “This page is having a problem” or other errors, BleepingComputer is reporting.

Reddit users soon discovered the bug impacted browsers with “Enhanced Web Protection” turned on. Some fixed it by turning the setting off — or switching Edge profiles. Everyone else will have to wait for Microsoft to release a fix, it seems.


A screenshot of an error message on Microsoft Edge.
A screenshot of an error message on Microsoft Edge.
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What is Microsoft teasing?

Microsoft Design Week is an internal event, but... maybe there’s some particularly awesome concept it’ll share?


Proton Pass is now available as a Windows app.

Proton’s end-to-encrypted password manager launched last year — but only on the web, Android, and iOS. This new Windows app lets you access your passwords offline (as long as you have a Proton Pass Plus or Unlimited subscription). It also keeps passwords protected with the Argon2 hashing algorithm.

Proton is planning to launch its password manager on macOS and Linux later this year.


Image: Proton