Windows 11 had a rough year, but it appears to be getting back on track, as the company is adding the most-requested features to the operating system and carefully testing monthly updates. Now, Satya Nadella has confirmed that Microsoft wants to “win back” Windows fans by focusing on fundamentals.
On Wednesday, Microsoft posted its Q3 2026 earnings report, beating analyst expectations. During the earnings call, CEO Satya Nadella mentioned Windows several times, which is notable because Windows rarely gets this kind of attention from Microsoft’s top leadership unless the discussion is about enterprise.
There’s no denying that Microsoft has always favored enterprise and government customers over consumers, but that doesn’t mean it no longer cares about people like you and me. During the Q3 2026 earnings call, Nadella confirmed it’s fully focused on winning back consumers across all its businesses, including Windows and Xbox.
But how does Microsoft plan to “win back” consumers, especially those who use Windows but have grown apart in recent years? According to CEO Satya Nadella, Microsoft plans to focus on core users and double down on the foundational work to increase engagement across Windows, Microsoft Edge, Bing, and Xbox.
“When it comes to our consumer business, we are doing the foundational work required to win back fans and strengthen engagement across Windows, Xbox, Bing, and Edge. In the near term, we are focused on fundamentals, prioritizing quality and serving our core users better,” CEO Satya Nadella explained during the earnings call.
“You see this in the work underway across our consumer products. With Windows, we recently announced performance improvements for lower memory devices, streamlined the Windows Update experience, and brought back focus to core features and fundamentals that matter most to our customers.”
1.6 billion monthly active devices use Windows
During the earnings call, Nadella added that Windows now has 1.6 billion monthly active devices, which likely includes PCs running Windows 10 and older versions. We don’t have the numbers specifically for Windows 11, but Microsoft is hopeful that the value of the operating system will continue to extend to “deliver unmetered intelligence at the edge.”
“Monthly active Windows devices surpassed 1.6 billion, and over time Windows value will extend to deliver unmetered intelligence at the edge,” Nadella noted.
We’re already seeing some of the improvements in Windows 11, including the ability to pause Windows updates for as long as you want, faster startup apps, and up to eighteen major changes.
Microsoft teases 18 notable improvements for Windows 11
As I reported earlier, Microsoft is actually committed to delivering major improvements in 2026, and I don’t think these are just ‘words.’ In fact, some of the changes are already rolling out to Windows Insiders, and we’ve made a list of at least 18 big changes under development.
1. Quieter Windows experience
Microsoft’s senior Windows executive confirmed that there are plans to “reduce” ads or upsells in Windows, especially during OOBE. Right now, Windows OOBE (out-of-the-box experience) upsells Microsoft 365, Microsoft 365 Basic, OneDrive, Xbox Game Pass, and even Copilot.
It’s unclear if Microsoft will completely remove these ads, but there are plans to “reduce” them.
Microsoft is also testing “a more streamlined first-time setup and onboarding experience.”
Some of the changes have already rolled out, including the ability to skip Windows updates during setup.
2. Movable taskbar
Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 11 will let you move the taskbar to any side of the screen.
3. Start menu is switching to WinUI
For those unaware, the Start menu in Windows 11 is not fully native. The Recommended section uses React Native, which looks and works fine most of the time, but the catch is that it still has a latency problem.
The Start menu can feel slow when the Recommended feed is crowded, but it’s finally getting a much-needed boost.
The Start menu will switch to WinUI and improve performance. Microsoft also has plans to make the Start menu resizable, similar to Windows 10’s version.
4. Copilot is being scaled back, and all other changes
Microsoft is reducing Copilot integration in Windows 11 apps like Snipping Tool, Notepad, and others.
Microsoft has already dropped Copilot branding in Windows Notepad and entirely removed AI from Snipping Tool.
In addition to the aforementioned changes, File Explorer is being made faster, smoother, and more reliable, with fewer UI flickers, better navigation, improved search, and more stable file transfers.
Microsoft is also working on reducing baseline RAM usage and fixing dark mode inconsistencies across legacy dialogs, file properties, operation pop-ups, account dialogs, and even areas like Registry Editor.
At the same time, more Control Panel features are slowly moving to the modern Settings app, but Microsoft cannot rush this because older hardware, drivers, and enterprise workflows still depend on those legacy systems.
Microsoft says all these improvements will roll out throughout the year.
