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Key Takeaways

  • Per a leaked memo, Microsoft's September 21 event will focus on the power of AI in Surface, Microsoft 365, and Windows products.
  • The internal memo highlights Panos Panay's departure and mentions the partnership with OpenAI.
  • The memo also mentions Windows Copilot and the importance of Surface and silicon in future cloud experiences.

Microsoft's special September 21 event in New York City is now just a day away, but an internal memo sent out to employees at the company has spilled some of the beans on what you might expect. It is shaping up to be an event that will focus heavily on the power of AI in many Microsoft products, including Surface, Microsoft 365, and Windows.

As obtained by The Verge the internal memo penned by Yusuf Mehdi addresses former Surface and Windows Chief Panos Panay's departure from the company. Mehdi apparently highlighted how Panay is a "champion" in Microsoft, and went on to mention in the memo how the Thursday event will build on what Microsoft has already accomplished with partner OpenAI. "This Thursday at our event in NYC, we’ll share the next step we’ll take to further build on this work and lead in this exciting new era. I will keep the news of this event confidential until we tell the world later this week, but it will lay out the vision for what’s ahead", writes Mehdni in the memo.

Other highlights of the internal memo include mentions of Windows Copilot, and how it will be shipping on new Windows 11 PCs from the Surface brand and also other OEMs. In a nod to rumors about how the Surface Laptop Studio 2 could include an NPU, the Microsoft exec even went on to mention how critical Surface and silicon will be critical to future cloud experiences at Microsoft. "This is our chance to leap ahead and change the very game of how devices and systems operate", Mehdi wrote while mentioning Pavan Davuluri, who succeeds Panay.

There's no doubt that AI is the next big thing for Microsoft, so none of what's said in this internal memo is quite surprising, but it does show that with Pany's departure, Microsoft is moving teams around to take AI more seriously on the consumer side. Microsoft's been rumored to be working on its own AI chips for a while now, and we've already seen the company roll out and test AI-powered features in Microsoft Paint and the Windows 11 Photos app.

XDA will be on the ground in New York City for Thursday's Microsoft event, and we'll have all the news for you as it happens.