Windows now has AI-powered copy and paste

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What if your clipboard were a place AI could work its magic? With the PowerToys Advanced Paste update, it’s all possible (for a small fee).

By Umar Shakir, a news writer fond of the electric vehicle lifestyle and things that plug in via USB-C. He spent over 15 years in IT support before joining The Verge.

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Illustration: The Verge

Microsoft is adding a new Advanced Paste feature to PowerToys for Windows 11 that can convert your clipboard content on the fly with the power of AI. The new feature can help people speed up their workflows by doing things like copying code in one language and pasting it in another, although its best tricks require OpenAI API credits.

Advanced Paste is included in PowerToys version 0.81 and, once enabled, can be activated with a special key command: Windows Key + Shift + V. That opens an Advanced Paste text window that offers paste conversion options including plaintext, markdown, and JSON.

If you enable Paste with AI in the Advanced Paste settings, you’ll also see an OpenAI prompt where you can enter the conversion you want — summarized text, translations, generated code, a rewrite from casual to professional style, Yoda syntax, or whatever you can think to ask for.

Advanced Paste window.
Image: Microsoft

There are prerequisites to use the feature, though. You’ll need to add an OpenAI API key in PowerToys, and you’ll need to buy credits for your OpenAI account if you don’t have any. (API credits are different from a paid ChatGPT account.)

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