People assigned to review Copilot prompts are being shown sexually explicit images and potentially illegal content, according to a report by 404 Media. The report cites Microsoft documents, threads with messages from contractors, and guidelines from a company called Prolific that hires the contractors assigned to review prompts given to Copilot.

Copilot prompts and image uploads can be reviewed by human contractors to improve the tool.

The fact that humans review Copilot conversations should not come as a surprise. Many companies rely on people to assess and audit AI responses. There are, however, some key differences between the recently uncovered situation and other reviews of AI responses.

The people who are looking at these queries are not being asked to flag inappropriate content or help reduce sexual conversations with Copilot. Instead, the contractors are being asked if Copilot did a good job responding to queries.

There are several negative consequences that come as a result of this setup. One is the fact that people are being inundated with sexual questions and images, often without warning.

404 Media saw the contents of an internal message board discussing reviews of Copilot prompts. The thread showed that people were asked to ensure a woman's skirt had been made short enough or if a woman's breasts had been adequately enlarged.

She-Hulk images come up a lot, according to the thread seen by 404 Media. Other content includes suggestive images of young girls and making an image of Ariana Grande with anorexia.

"Who is writing these prompts and who is deciding that basically generating porn is what Copilot is now focused on? It’s hard to take things seriously when my focus has to be what model generated the appropriate bust size or which middle aged woman was put in the appropriate sexually suggestive position," said one contractor in the thread.

Microsoft's guidance to contractors is to trust their intuition, according to documents seen by 404 Media. The company asks people to rely on their gut reaction to determine if an image meets the demands of a prompt.

In a vacuum, asking people to assess the realism of AI-generated images is fine. Humans have an uncanny ability to detect when an image feels off. But the contractors are not being asked to determine if an innocent image looks real.

Contractors are sometimes given tasks that turn out to include explicit, unsafe, or potentially illegal images, according to 404 Media. One contractor discussed being sent a collection of upskirt photos. While those types of images can be taken with consent, they often are taken without permission.

Other prompts reviewed by humans include a request to make fetish images of children's cartoon characters.

Microsoft provided a statement to 404 Media:

"Microsoft uses customer data as described in our terms of use, including to improve our products and enforce our code of conduct."

Prolific did not respond to a request for comment made by 404 Media.

404 Media breaks down the situation extensively, so I suggest reading through all of their coverage as well. The piece asks for prompt reviewers to reach out to 404 Media, so we may see more details emerge in the future.

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After years of trying to get people to embrace the Copilot+ PC brand, Microsoft decided to move away from the moniker entirely. The new Surface Pro 12-inch and Surface Laptop 13-inch aren't called Copilot+ PCs even though they meet all the technical requirements to be labeled as such.

That leaves some of us in a strange spot. Many purchased Copilot+ PCs because that was the only way to get a new model of certain laptops. People can enable or disable AI features as they'd like, but Copilot+ PCs feature a Copilot key that is useless to a lot of people.

There are non-Copilot+ PCs and keyboards that feature a Copilot key. But because of the recent change regarding Copilot+ PCs, people online have complained about their Copilot+ PCs having a Copilot key, so I made this guide.

So, what can you do if you spent hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars on a laptop to get the latest specs only to find a key on your keyboard wasted? Luckily, Microsoft considered this quandary and made it possible to remap the Copilot key.

Windows 11 allows you to customize what the Copilot key does, but the options are limited. You can set the key to open Search, open Copilot, or launch an app.

If you want more control over what the Copilot key does (pun intended), you can use PowerToys to remap the key.

You can also spend a few dollars to cover up the Copilot logo and replace it with whatever you'd like to remap that key to.

How to remap Copilot key in Windows 11

This is the easiest option, but it has serious limitations.

• Open the Settings app on Windows 11.
• Open Bluetooth & devices.
• Open Keyboard.
• Click the dropdown menu next to Customize Copilot key on keyboard.
• Select Search, Copilot, or Open an app.

The option to remap the Copilot key shipped to Windows 11 this year, so you need to make sure your PC is up to date to use the feature.

How to remap Copilot key with PowerToys

If you want to remap the Copilot key to do something other than launch Search, Copilot, or an app, you need to use a separate application. PowerToys includes a Keyboard Manager that does the trick.

Because the Copilot key is treated by Windows 11 as a shortcut and not as a single key, you need to use the option to remap a shortcut.

I found this process easier to complete using the classic Keyboard Manager within PowerToys. You can do this by toggling Try the new editor off.

• Install PowerToys.
• Open PowerToys.
• Open the Keyboard Manager tool.
• Make sure Keyboard Manager is enabled.
• Select Remap a shortcut.
• Select Add shortcut remapping.
• Set the shortcut to Windows + Shift + Ctrl + F23.
• Set the action to whatever you'd like (such as Ctrl (Right)).

Since few keyboards have an F23 key, I found it easier to use the classic editor in Keyboard Manager. Our colleagues at Tom's Hardware were the first to discover that the Copilot key is actually a shortcut using F23.

How to cover the Copilot key

Even if you remap the Copilot key, the logo will still appear on your keyboard. If you dislike keys mismatching what they input on your PC, you may want to cover up the Copilot key.

Unfortunately, how easy that will be depends on the color of your keyboard. It's very easy to find keyboard stickers in black or white. This listing on Amazon includes stickers in white, black, and in various languages.

If you have a Surface with a gray keyboard or a colorful Type Cover, you may struggle to find a sticker that matches the color of your keys. You may have better luck on eBay or Etsy, but since items there are often custom made, I won't recommend a specific set of stickers.

If you find stickers to replace the Copilot key on your PC and want to make sure other people know about them, comment below or reach out to me on social media and I'll update this piece.

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Microsoft Teams will no longer show a shortcut to the Copilot app in the Teams chat list. The change is expected to roll out in mid-to-late October and will affect the desktop and web versions of Teams.

Right now, there are two ways to navigate to Copilot within Teams and the two entry points lead to different experiences. Microsoft explained the need for the change through the Microsoft 365 Message Center (archived here):

"Today, users can access Copilot either from the Teams chat list or from the Copilot app in the Teams app bar. Beginning in October 2026, we will remove the Copilot entry point from the Teams chat list and direct users to access Copilot through the Copilot app. The Copilot app provides access to the full set of Copilot capabilities, while the chat list entry point provides a more limited experience."

The Copilot shortcut in the Teams chat list made Copilot more visible, but that entry point led to a limited experience. My guess is that some people only knew about the Teams chat list icon and ended up using a limited version of Copilot.

After October, there will be a single entry point for Copilot in Teams and those who use it will be presented with the full experience.

The mobile versions of Teams are unaffected by this change.

Copilot in flux

Copilot finds itself in a state of flux. Microsoft just announced a massive shift in its Copilot strategy. A major update to Copilot flips the approach Microsoft is taking. Rather than have Copilot sprinkled across Microsoft 365, Copilot will act as a unified workspace that connects documents, conversations, data, and tasks.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella went as far as to call the update a new operating system. Three new landing spots for Copilot will provide new ways to interact with the tool, such as Home serving as a landing spot. Changes then permeate throughout relevant Microsoft 365 apps.

The exact features and experiences you will see will depend on what type of Microsoft 365 subscription you have.

More details about Copilot are expected at Microsoft Ignite in November. The key takeaway for now is that while Microsoft is shifting where it uses the Copilot moniker and how people access Copilot, the AI tool is very much an integral part of the company's plans.

Based on the upcoming change to Teams, it's clear that Copilot will still be accessible through apps. But Microsoft may emphasize different experiences or streamline the entry points to the tool.

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"I think we are way too self-obsessed as an industry," said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in a recent interview about AI shared by Alex Heath of Sound Ventures. Nadella explained that AI leaders can get caught up in the wrong parts of AI and lose touch with what people need.

"I think the real world wants to know... that this is technology that they can use for their benefit, they can control, they can have an economic future." He also talked about how people need to see that data centers can lead to an economic surplus in an area and benefit the people surrounding it.

Nadella added that tech leaders should ask "what did we get wrong in the west," alluding to recent polling data that suggested AI is viewed more favorably in other parts of the world.

He emphasized the need to earn the trust of consumers and communities as well.

Nadella concluded the snippet with a warning against celebrating technology for its own sake: "Just any amount of celebrating technology for technology's sake is not working."

Windows Central take

Nadella may want to send an internal memo to Microsoft employees reiterating his comments from the interview. Microsoft's AI leadership has often been criticized for being out of touch with everyday users.

Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman has shared several controversial thoughts and opinions that drew criticism.

Suleyman has shared assurances that Microsoft will never build a sex robot and talked about how superintelligence should not replace the human species.

But Suleyman has also discussed the concept of AI knowing specific users "deeply" and people not needing money in certain areas because intelligence will be a new currency (while noting cash will still be required).

While these high-concept discussions make headlines, they do little for the average person asking why their operating system needs a chatbot.

Suleyman responded to those unimpressed with AI late last year:

"Jeez there so many cynics! It cracks me up when I hear people call AI underwhelming...The fact that people are unimpressed that we can have a fluent conversation with a super smart AI that can generate any image/video is mindblowing to me."

Suleyman is far from the only AI leader to draw criticism or be accused of being out of touch with everyday users. OpenAI's Sam Altman is often called out for similar comments. I'm curious to see how AI leaders across the industry respond to Nadella's comments.

Perhaps more important than existential threats or the creepiness of an AI knowing you intimately, many people simply fail to see a real-world use for AI. Early this year, Dell said that consumers don't care about AI PCs and that "AI probably confuses them more than it helps them."

Microsoft is quietly shifting away from the Copilot+ PC brand. Despite meeting the technical qualifications to be Copilot+ PCs, the new Surface Pro 12-inch and Surface Laptop 13-inch will not be branded with that term.

The Copilot+ PC brand failed for many reasons, but one factor is that many users do not see the real-world benefit of AI.

Nadella's recent comments show that he is aware of the gap between AI's capabilities and AI's everyday usefulness.

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