Fast Technology reported on February 4 that Microsoft is preparing a major update to Windows, which is expected to be pushed to Windows 11 users this fall.
But the naming of the new version has been pending. Is it as a brand new version of Windows 11, or is it just called Windows 12 from scratch?
It is reported that the internal code name of the new version of Windows is "Hudson Valley" (Hudson River Valley), and the internal code name of the current Windows 11 system is "Sun Valley (Sun Valley)".
ps.The Hudson Valley is a river valley formed around the Hudson River in New York, USA, stretching from Albany and Troy in the north to Yonkers in the south.
It is reported that the focus of "Hudson Valley" is on the next generation of AI experiences, and everything about it is AI. AI will be "woven and integrated" throughout the operating system, where much of the experience will require new NPU hardware to run.
According to the latest report from WC, the new version of Windows will most likely not be called Windows 12, and the main reasons are as follows:
The first is that Windows has a new boss. The former boss of Windows, Panos Panay, was in charge of Windows and Surface, and the two divisions have been split. And the new boss, Mikhail Parakhin, is the CEO of Microsoft's advertising and web services division, and in addition to the aforementioned web products, he is now responsible for overseeing Windows.
Under Panay's leadership, Microsoft restored the development cycle for major versions of the Windows platform to three years. But now that Windows is part of the Web Experience team, the new boss wants to emphasize Windows as a Service, which means releasing features and platform improvements as they are ready, rather than waiting for a major release every few years.
Secondly, there is the fragmentation problem that is a headache for Microsoft. Windows 10 has about 1 billion users, while Windows 11 has only 400 million, and the update process is slow. Most users don't care about new versions of Windows and prefer to wait until their existing computer is no longer suitable for use before buying a new one. Therefore, the launch of Windows 12 is also difficult to drive enthusiasm for upgrades.
And if Hudson Valley rolls out in the form of a major update to Windows 11, it's hard for users to say no. Microsoft's current update policy is that once you are using a version of Windows 11 that reaches the end of support period, it will automatically update to the latest version of Windows 11 to ensure system security.
Third, and more importantly, Microsoft is rapidly becoming an AI company, and shareholders want to see Microsoft's AI technology and services used by as many people as possible.
Therefore, the next Windows version should be familiar, easy to use, and most importantly, it will be released as an update for all 400 million Windows 11 users.