Windows Insider Build Brings AI-Powered Semantic Search to Snapdragon PCs
Microsoft is introducing semantic search in its latest Windows Insider Dev Channel build, giving Snapdragon Copilot+ PCs a powerful new feature. Semantic search goes beyond traditional keyword-based searches, enabling users to locate files and settings by describing them in natural language. This feature builds on Microsoft’s AI roadmap, which also includes Generative Fill and image upscaling.
Available exclusively on Snapdragon-powered PCs for now, semantic search leverages advanced AI capabilities through these devices’ NPUs. The feature supports searching for documents, images, and more in File Explorer and the Settings app. Users can describe a file’s contents or purpose instead of relying on exact filenames or keywords. File formats supported include common document types like DOCX and PDF, as well as image formats like JPEG and PNG.
To use semantic search, users need to configure their PC’s search indexing. By navigating to Settings > Privacy & security > Searching Windows, they can enable Enhanced indexing to cover all locations on the device.
For now, semantic search is limited to Qualcomm-powered PCs, but Microsoft assures that support for AMD and Intel-based Copilot+ systems is on the horizon, with a broader rollout planned soon.