Xbox CEO Asha Sharma announced that Microsoft will wind down the Copilot AI assistant on the Xbox mobile app and halt its development for consoles. The move comes amid efforts to refocus the gaming division. Sharma shared the plans in a post on May 5, 2026.
Microsoft's Xbox division is retiring features including its Copilot AI assistant, which had been introduced as an in-game helper aware of players' screens. A beta version launched on the Xbox mobile app in May 2025, with plans outlined in a March 2026 GDC presentation to bring it to consoles later this year. Those console plans will now be stopped, Sharma stated, as they do not align with Xbox's direction. Sharma, who previously led Microsoft's CoreAI division, made the announcement alongside new leadership hires. She posted: “Xbox needs to move faster, deepen our connection with the community, and address friction for both players and developers. Today, we promoted leaders who helped build Xbox, while also bringing in new voices to help push us forward. This balance is important as we get the business back on track. As part of this shift, you'll see us begin to retire features that don't align with where we're headed. We will begin winding down Copilot on mobile and will stop development of Copilot on console.” The new team includes Jared Palmer, former CoreAI vice president of product, now handling Xbox engineering and infrastructure; Tim Allen, ex-vice president of design and research at CoreAI, leading Xbox design; and Evan Chaki, a former CoreAI general manager overseeing a team to simplify development, according to CNBC.
