A new mascot at Microsoft. Almost thirty years ago, Microsoft users first discovered Clippy, the paperclip-shaped assistant that wanted to help users of the Office suite. The most famous trombones have since been retired.
The company tried to revive the spirit of the assistant through Cortana… without really achieving the expected success. Nothing to discourage Microsoft. As reported by The Verge, the technology giant has just introduced Mico, its new Copilot partner.
A face for copilot
This character takes the form of a small yellow ball, with a cartoonish smile. This digital assistant acts as the visible face of Copilot AI. Its name is also a contraction of Mi(crosoft) and Co(pilot). “Listen, react and even change color depending on the nature of your interactions,” the company specifies.
“You can see that he reacts when you talk to him, and if you talk about something sad, you will see that his facial expressions react almost immediately,” says Jacob Andreou. “All the technology takes a backseat and you just start talking to this cute orb and forming a connection with it.”
Mico can also feature a new memory feature within Copilot that allows it to remind you and your work. So much so that it would even be designed to “connect” with users. “Learn Live” mode also allows the new virtual companion to become a teacher, for example to help students take an exam or learn a language.
Clippy’s return?
In itself it does not bring great news. Nor does it revolutionize the Redmond giant’s interest in AI. But this friendly avatar acts as a “friendly and attractive” entity, in Microsoft’s words, which pushes users to discover Copilot more naturally, without necessarily realizing it.
At the moment, Mico is only available in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada. Mico will be enabled there by default. But it is possible to relegate it to the closet by going to the options.
And it’s a safe bet that the little yellow orb will evolve in the coming months or years. Because Microsoft’s objective is clear: to provide Copilot with an identity and convince users to change its uses. Ultimately, Microsoft hopes that Internet users will abandon their keyboard and mouse to… talk to their devices. “The co-pilot will surely have some kind of permanent identity, a presence, and will have a room in which he will live and grow old,” Mustafa Suleyman explained last July.
But for those nostalgic for the ’90s, Microsoft has thought of everything. The company has hidden a surprise in its new software.
By clicking on the little character several times, it is possible to make Clippy appear. “In a sense, we all live in the shadow of Clippy,” Jacob Andreou concludes mischievously.
Source: BFM TV
