Microsoft’s annual developer conference, Build 2026, is set to kick off on June 2. The company is expected to make a series of announcements around artificial intelligence, its operating system, and developer tools at the event. According to a report by The Verge, the company is preparing to showcase new AI models, a developer-focused Windows 11 experience, improvements to Windows performance, and future plans for Copilot.
Microsoft Build 2026: Details
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Date: June 2 -
Time: 9:30 AM PT -
Where to watch: Microsoft Build 2026’s keynote address will be livestreamed on Microsoft’s YouTube channel
Alternatively, readers may also watch the event through the livestream embedded at the end of this article.
Microsoft Build 2026: What to expect
Microsoft may unveil new AI models
Artificial intelligence is expected to remain the centrepiece of the conference. According to The Verge, Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman is expected to introduce a new reasoning model called MAI-Thinking-1.
The report claims the model will be Microsoft’s first reasoning-focused AI system and has reportedly been developed without using model distillation, a technique where one AI model learns from the foundations of another model. The Verge expects the model to be targeted primarily at enterprise customers. In addition, Microsoft is also expected to announce new image-generation models, including MAI-Image-2.5 and MAI-Image-2.5-Flash.
Copilot super app reportedly in development
The Verge also reported that Microsoft is working on a new Copilot super app that would bring multiple Copilot AI assistants into a single interface. The report claims that development is still ongoing. Earlier last month, an image of this alleged super app surfaced online, which also gave a glimpse of Microsoft Scout, an AI agent that is believed to be connected to Microsoft’s OpenClaw project. However, the report added that the image was only a mock-up created for internal demonstrations.
The application is not expected to be available during Build, with preview access potentially arriving later this year.
New Windows experience for developers
According to The Verge, Microsoft is expected to introduce a new Windows 11 developer-optimised experience designed to simplify software development workflows. The new environment is expected to include pre-installed developer tools, applications, and scripts, while reducing distractions within the operating system. The feature is reportedly aimed at addressing long-standing requests from developers for a more streamlined Windows setup.
Microsoft is also expected to provide updates on its broader efforts to improve Windows 11 performance and user experience. The Verge said the company may reveal some customisation features during Build.
Focus on local AI models and RTX Spark
Local AI processing on Windows devices is expected to be another key focus during the conference. Microsoft has prepared new capabilities that will allow developers to run AI models locally on Windows PCs instead of relying entirely on cloud-based services. This could help reduce operational costs and improve performance for certain AI workloads. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella may discuss this in detail alongside Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
On May 31, Nvidia announced the RTX Spark “superchip” built for running heavy AI workloads on-device. Following this, Microsoft revealed that it has optimised Windows specifically for Nvidia’s RTX Spark, which will run Windows on Arm. These optimisations include improved workload scheduling across the CPU architecture, better power and thermal management, and enhancements to unified memory handling. The amount of system memory available to the GPU has increased, along with improved memory management for AI, gaming, and content-creation workloads. The company noted that this has effectively unlocked the ability to load larger local AI models or render more complex projects.
For software compatibility, Microsoft confirmed that its Prism emulator will allow traditional 32-bit and 64-bit x86 applications to run on RTX Spark-powered devices and has been further tuned for the new hardware. The company also highlighted support for Windows ML and native TensorRT integration, while noting a range of Windows on Arm applications. Microsoft added that Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro run natively on Arm and are receiving further optimisations in collaboration with Adobe and Nvidia.
Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra
On May 31, Microsoft announced the Surface Laptop Ultra. The company said the device has been developed in collaboration with Nvidia and is optimised for RTX Spark. According to Microsoft, the laptop combines an Nvidia Blackwell RTX GPU, full CUDA support, and up to 128GB of unified memory, enabling AI, 3D rendering, software development, and other compute-intensive workloads to run locally on the device.
Microsoft said the Surface Laptop Ultra is capable of delivering up to 1 petaflop of AI performance and can run AI models with up to 120 billion parameters locally. The company added that its unified memory architecture allows memory resources to be dynamically shared between the CPU and GPU depending on workload requirements. Microsoft also highlighted an energy-efficient CPU design and claimed the device offers all-day battery life.
On the hardware front, Microsoft said the Surface Laptop Ultra features a 15-inch PixelSense Ultra mini-LED touchscreen with up to 2,000 nits of peak HDR brightness and a pixel density of 262 PPI. The laptop also includes what Microsoft describes as the largest haptic touchpad ever fitted to a Surface device, along with HDMI, USB-C, USB-A, SD card, and headphone ports. The device will be available in Platinum and Nightfall colour options.
The company has not yet detailed variants, pricing, or availability of the device. It is likely that the company will announce these at the event.
GitHub may be a key topic
Beyond Windows and AI, The Verge believes Microsoft may also address the future of GitHub. The publication noted that GitHub has faced challenges in recent months, including employee departures, service outages, and security-related incidents. According to the report, Build presents an opportunity for Microsoft to reassure developers and outline plans for improving the platform.
The Verge said Microsoft faces increasing pressure to rebuild trust among developers who rely on GitHub for software development and collaboration.
