Windows 11’s new background AI assistant raises fresh questions about data privacy

The first step to doing this is a new experimental feature called “Agent Workspace”. Agent Workspace is meant to allow special AI agents to access your most commonly used local folders, like Desktop, Music, Pictures, and Videos. More importantly, it will provide Windows 11 AI agent their own isolated space to work in (runtime, desktop, user account), and the ability to run in the background all the time (enabled once you turn it on).

Windows 11’s new agentic Windows 11 update features in the works

Windows Latest first found an early sign of this shift immediately after installing Windows 11 Build 26220.7262. A new toggle for “Experimental agentic features” was found nestled within the “AI Components” page (Settings app > System).

What are AI Agents?

Before we delve into Agent Workspace, it’s important to first have a general understanding of what an AI Agent is. If you have spent any time using ChatGPT, you have likely interacted with these. AI access personal folders Windows of advanced software that can intelligently move about digital spaces and perform tasks as if it was a person, typically operating through its own interface.

Allowing access to your Folders

Agent Workspace is the user-controlled permission allowing these agents access to certain apps and designated local folders like your Desktop, Music, Pictures, and Videos.

Agent Workspace has to have access to applications and private folders with your personal data to perform the actions you request, so Microsoft is taking Windows 11 security risk very seriously here. The Redmond tech giant notes that the Agent Workspace has its own authorization model (user account, similar to your own) and employs runtime isolation.

AI Agents may be slow

AI agents are going to be running in Microsoft AI background agent all the time and utilize RAM and/or CPU (varies on what the agent is doing). However, Microsoft’s early benchmarks show they will not drain your PC of power. Microsoft states AI Agents will use a limited amount of RAM and CPU, but is not giving us details on how limited the ‘limit’ will be.