Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Teased Something Big at the Build Conference

Microsoft’s annual Build conference for software developers kicked off on Tuesday and the company’s CEO Satya Nadella teasted a big Windows Update.

Nadella said “one of the most significant updates of Windows of the past decade” in his kickoff speech at the conference.

Microsoft had made several cloud product announcements, and the company indicated that its Windows operating system will be getting better for developers, too.

“Soon we will share one of the most significant updates of Windows of the past decade to unlock greater economic opportunity for developers and creators,” Nadella said during his keynote at the virtual conference. “I’ve been self-hosting it over the past several months, and I’m incredibly excited about the next generation of Windows.”

He continued, “Our promise to you is this: We will create more opportunities for every Windows developer today and welcome every creator who is looking for the most innovative, new, open platform to build and distribute and monetize applications.”

Along with the event, Microsoft released a 43-page “book of news” detailing its updates. In the introduction the company wrote, “Developers have been critical to helping businesses remain resilient and agile over the past year. As we look across our customers and partners, we’re seeing the business impact of developers increasing as the world begins to rebuild and industries continue to innovate. Developers are no longer simply building apps; they’re building digital products that drive us forward and solve the world’s most challenging problems. Microsoft Build is for every developer—from seasoned software developers to low-code citizen developers, from data scientists to security engineers, from startups to students and more. As you’ve come to expect, this Book of News is your resource for all the announcements we’re making at Microsoft Build.”

Here are some highlights:

Windows on Arm developer kit. Microsoft will start selling an affordable Windows PC running Arm
starting this summer that’s meant to make it easier for developers to get their Windows apps running well on 64-bit Arm devices, not just traditional Intel or AMD-based systems.

Azure AI is introducing new enhancements to empower developers to significantly reduce time to value in modernizing common business processes.

Microsoft Edge will be the best-performing browser on Windows 10 with Microsoft Edge 91.

Superior performance is based on Sleeping tabs and Startup boost, features exclusive to Edge.
Blockchain data storage. Microsoft announced the preview of Azure Confidential Ledger, a tool for storing critical data.

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.