New Windows AI PCs take screenshots of everything you do

Microsoft announced new Windows Copilot+ AI PC initiatives on May 20, 2024, alongside a new feature that screenshots everything you do on your PC.

Microsoft is calling the new tool Recall, and it’s supposed to help you find the content you have previously viewed on your PC. The tool does that by recording everything you do, including activities in apps, communications in live meetings, and websites visited.

“Recall uses Copilot+ PC advanced processing capabilities to take images of your active screen every few seconds,” Microsoft says on its website.

“The snapshots are encrypted and saved on your PC’s hard drive. You can use Recall to locate the content you have viewed on your PC using search or on a timeline bar that allows you to scroll through your snapshots.”

To use the feature, you perform a “Recall” action, which functions like an AI-powered search. It will present a snapshot of that period, providing context for the memory. You’ll then be able to explore a timeline of everything you do on your PC.

Microsoft gives you some control over what Recall captures. You can pause it completely, delete specific snapshots, or tell it to ignore certain apps and websites. Recall won’t take pictures of your activity when you’re using InPrivate mode in Microsoft Edge.

While the feature might sound useful, it could also lead to potential privacy concerns. If anyone gets a hold of your PC or Windows account, they’ll be able to find out what you’ve been doing. This could be especially risky for journalists, human rights activists, or whistleblowers.

Users are already calling out this brand-new feature. Tesla CEO Elon Musk criticized the feature in an X post, noting, “This is a Black Mirror episode. Definitely turning this feature off.”

Recall will only work with the new Copilot Plus PCs powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chips, which have the neural processing unit (NPU) required for Recall to function. The minimum hard drive space needed to run Recall is 256 GB, with 50 GB of available space.