Microsoft confirms that you can't uninstall its controversial Windows Recall AI feature

Before launching its new Copilot+ PC range, Microsoft pulled one of its flagship Windows 11 AI features, 'Recall.' The search tool leveraged the Copilot+ NPU to search your PC history to 'recall' or find things you've looked at or worked on. An example could be asking Recall to find that funny YouTube video you watched three days ago.

2

The only problem was that Recall worked by constantly taking screenshots of your desktop without any security or filters. From there, the AI builds a searchable index with everything categorized without regard for privacy.

Once this became known, the controversial AI feature made headlines, and it continued to make headlines until Microsoft pulled it from the Copilot+ PC launch to retool its functionality and security features. Well, it's coming back, and you won't be able to uninstall Recall once it does.

Windows Insiders with Copilot+ PCs will be able to test the revamped Recall sometime in October. The Verge reports that there won't be an option to uninstall the feature - it will always be there.

However, Microsoft is making it opt-in, and Recall won't be enabled by default. Microsoft has also confirmed that this updated version of the tool features an encrypted database and that authentication will require using Windows Hello facial recognition.

We don't blame anyone for wanting nothing to do with Recall. After all, the searchable index that was part of the first version of Recal that would ship with Copilot+ PCs featured countless unencrypted images and a database accessible by anyone with access to the PC.

Microsoft faces an uphill battle in selling Recall as a feature you'd want to use, so seeing the feedback from the Windows Insider release next month will be interesting. Also, with the European Commission's Digital Markets Act, Microsoft could be forced to add an uninstall option for Recall just like it was forced to include one for Edge, its Chromium-based browser.

• Read more: Windows 11 gets a gamepad keyboard for Xbox controllers in preview - a good sign for handhelds?
• Read more: Windows 11 is finally the most popular operating system in the world... for PC gamers
• Read more: New Windows 11 audio and video search feature scans and scrapes your system's media files
• Read more: Is Windows 11's big AI feature dead? Nope, Microsoft tells us - Recall is arriving in October