Microsoft Edge adds a new feature that allows the Copilot AI chatbot to collect information from all open tabs. When you start a conversation with Copilot, you can ask the chatbot questions about what’s on your tabs, compare the products you’re looking at, summarize the articles you have open, and more.
“You can choose the experiences you want or skip the ones you don’t,” Microsoft said in an announcement. The company is also discontinuing CoPilot mode, which similarly allowed you to retrieve information from tabs, but offered some agent functionality, such as the ability to make reservations on behalf of users. Microsoft has since incorporated these agent capabilities into its “Browse with Copilot” tool.
Edge will be adding several other AI features, including an AI-powered Learn & Learn mode that can turn the articles you’re viewing into learning sessions and interactive quizzes. Similar to what you’ll find in NotebookLM, there’s also a new tool that turns your tabs into AI-powered podcasts, as well as an AI writing assistant that pops up when you start typing text on a web page.
You can also give Copilot access to your browsing history to provide more “relevant, high-quality answers,” according to Microsoft. Copilot on Edge on desktop and mobile also has “long-term memory” that allows it to tailor its responses based on previous conversations. Additionally, when you open a new tab, you’ll see a redesigned page that combines chat, search, and web navigation, as well as a Journeys feature that uses AI to organize your browsing history into categories you can revisit.
Meanwhile, if you update your Edge mobile app, you’ll be able to share your screen with Copilot and discuss any questions you may have about what you’re seeing. Microsoft says it gives you “clear visual cues” when Copilot is active, so you “know when it’s taking action, assisting, listening, and viewing.”
