Xbox's New CEO Punts Copilot AI on Console as Microsoft Reworks Gaming Strategy

Microsoft’s Xbox gaming division is undergoing a major shift in strategy as recently installed CEO Asha Sharma has been implementing changes big and small. While many expected her to lead a push to more deeply integrate AI into the Xbox ecosystem, she has surprised many by announcing that the technology won’t be playing as big a role in the company’s mobile and console offerings.

In a post on social media platform X, the CEO shared that the company needs to become nimbler, build up its community, and make the experience better for players and developers. To achieve these goals Xbox will be changing course and will look to get rid of features that don’t help it get to where it wants to be. That includes “winding down Copilot on mobile and will stop development of Copilot on console.”

In a nod to its most loyal players, Sharma notes that employees who’ve had longer tenure at Xbox are getting bigger roles. “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.”


Additionally, she’s also hosted the man who is considered father of Xbox, Seamus Blackley, at the company’s campus to discuss the direction of the gaming division. After the meeting that included a hike, Blackley described her as “very cool,” and that he would share more about their talks at a later time. The fact that Sharma reached out and invited him to talk about Xbox will go a long way to making the community believe in her efforts to restore the brand.

It will be interesting to see if this new strategy is a short-term play or if it’ll be something longer lasting. Project Helix, the company’s next generation console, will be sporting a chip that will certainly be capable of running local AI models, and it’s unlikely Microsoft will pass up on the opportunity to deploy Copilot on a capable device. Time will tell how this pans out.