Giflib
The latest Giflib coverage — news, analysis, and updates from the WindowsNews.AI desk.
Microsoft Copilot Can Now Complete Purchases In-Chat as ESW Agentic Commerce Launches in the US
ESW launched ESW Agentic Commerce on July 21, 2026, integrating with Microsoft Copilot to allow brands to sell products directly inside AI conversations. The initial rollout is limited to the U.S., with plans for more agents and regions. The service handles catalog optimization, real-time inventory checks, and embedded checkout, aiming to bridge the gap between conversational product discovery and secure transactions.
Grok Lands in Outlook: A Practical Guide to AI-Powered Email
xAI has released a Grok add-in for Microsoft Outlook that lets users draft replies, manage their inbox, schedule meetings, and research from within the email client. This guide explains how it works, who can use it, and the privacy and administrative considerations for individuals, businesses, and IT departments.
Emergency Windows 11 Update KB5121767 Stops Dell Overheating, Shutdowns
Microsoft released emergency Windows 11 updates KB5121767 and KB5121768 to address a conflict between a routine Windows change and an Intel power-management driver on certain Dell laptops. The issue caused overheating, rapid battery drain, and unexpected shutdowns, while the cumulative patches focus solely on restoring proper thermal controls.
LG Monitors Silently Install a Full-Trust App That Pushes McAfee Ads at Every Boot
LG monitors are automatically installing a full-trust Windows app that bombards users with McAfee advertisements at startup, without consent. The app, delivered via Windows Update, raises security and trust concerns, but users can remove it and block future installations.
FluentCleaner Classic Packs a CCleaner-Like Cleanup Engine into a Tiny 3.57 MB Package
FluentCleaner Classic is a new open-source Windows cleanup utility that mirrors the classic CCleaner interface while weighing just 3.57 MB. It uses the same cleaning engine as the modern FluentCleaner and community-driven Winapp databases, delivering a portable, transparent, and advertisement-free alternative for users who want focused file cleanup without the bloat or registry-cleaning hype.
Experimental IA-64 Emulator Brings Windows XP and Server 2003 Itanium Editions Back to Life
An experimental IA-64 emulator now boots Windows XP and Server 2003 for Itanium systems, letting enthusiasts explore Microsoft’s long-inaccessible 64-bit branch on ordinary PCs. Though extremely slow and unfinished, version 0.1 marks a preservation milestone for an architecture that lost the market to x86-64.
Windows 11’s Latest Test Build Cleans Up Search by Removing Ads and Boosting Local Results
Microsoft is testing a new Windows 11 Search experience that strips out promotional content, prioritizes local files and apps, and lets users disable web suggestions with a single toggle. The redesign, currently in the Windows Insider Experimental channel, addresses years of complaints about search being cluttered with ads and online distractions. A wider rollout is expected after testing, but users on stable builds should wait rather than switching to unstable Insider previews.
Mistral's New AI Model Runs Where the Cloud Can't Reach: Inside Azure Local's Offline Push
Microsoft and Mistral have expanded their AI partnership with a multibillion-euro European GPU deal and the integration of Mistral Medium 3.5 and OCR 4 into Microsoft Foundry and Copilot Studio. The open-weight models can now run on Azure Local in fully disconnected environments, enabling offline AI for government, healthcare, manufacturing, and other regulated sectors. This analysis explains the technical details, practical implications for IT pros and end users, and what organizations must do to prepare for air-gapped AI deployments.
Microsoft’s Copilot App Gets a New Store Name — And a Clearer Windows Identity
The Copilot app in the Microsoft Store now carries the name 'Microsoft Copilot on Windows,' a subtle but important branding shift that clarifies the app’s role as the PC version of Microsoft’s AI assistant. While the change introduces no new features, it helps users distinguish the Windows experience from Copilot on the web, in Office, or on mobile, and sets the stage for future Windows-specific AI capabilities.
Microsoft to deploy AMD Helios AI racks in Azure by late 2026, targeting inference at scale
Microsoft will deploy AMD's Helios rack-scale AI system in Azure by late 2026, bringing Instinct MI455X GPUs, EPYC Venice CPUs, and ROCm software to its cloud. The move targets production AI inference and gives developers, IT admins, and Windows users a new alternative to Nvidia-backed services.
LG Monitors Silently Install McAfee Adware via Windows 11 — How to Stop It
LG's UltraGear monitors silently install the LG Monitor App Installer on Windows 11 via a metadata mechanism, which then pushes unsolicited McAfee ads. The automatic installation lacks user consent and transforms a companion app into an adware channel. This article explains what happened, the impact on home users, gamers, and IT admins, and provides step-by-step instructions to check, remove, and prevent such unwanted installations.
Microsoft and Mistral’s New Partnership Lets European Enterprises Run AI on Local Servers—No Internet Required
Microsoft and Mistral AI announced an expanded partnership on July 21, 2026, allowing European enterprises to deploy Mistral models on Azure Local—including fully disconnected servers. The multibillion-dollar deal includes thousands of NVIDIA Vera Rubin GPUs in European data centers, open-weight language model Mistral Medium 3.5, document AI model OCR 4, and joint go-to-market support. For regulated industries, this means running frontier AI with greater data control, but IT teams must prepare for new operational demands like air-gapped update procedures and GPU cluster management.
AMD Helios comes to Azure: New VMs tackle production inference, data prep, and chip design
Microsoft will deploy AMD's Helios rack-scale AI platform on Azure, introducing the ND MI455X v7 VM for production inference alongside HDv2 for data pipelines and HXv2 for semiconductor design. The move diversifies Azure's hardware, gives cloud users access to AMD's MI455X accelerators, and signals a shift toward systems designed for distinct AI workloads rather than one-size-fits-all instances. Availability is expected after AMD ships Helios in the second half of 2026.