AI-powered image editing comes to Microsoft Paint: Microsoft is introducing new AI-powered features to its Paint and Photos applications, bringing advanced editing capabilities typically associated with professional software to everyday users.
- The update includes Generative Fill and Generative Erase tools for Paint, allowing users to add or remove objects from images using a brush-like interface.
- These features are similar to tools found in Adobe Photoshop, potentially reducing the need for more complex image editing software for some users.
- The new tools build upon the previously announced Cocreator feature for Paint, which generates images based on text prompts and reference sketches.
Enhanced capabilities in Microsoft Photos: Alongside the Paint updates, Microsoft’s Photos app is also receiving new AI-powered features to improve image quality and editing options.
- The Photos app will include the Generative Erase tool, enabling users to remove unwanted elements from their images.
- A new Super-Resolution feature uses on-device AI to upscale blurry or pixelated images by up to eight times their original resolution.
- Users can adjust the level of upscaling with a slider, offering flexibility in image enhancement.
Comparison to existing tools: The new features in Microsoft’s applications appear to match or exceed the capabilities of some existing image editing tools.
- The Generative Erase feature is similar to the Magic Eraser found on Google’s Pixel phones.
- The Super-Resolution feature in Photos matches the capabilities of Canva’s image upscaler and surpasses Adobe Lightroom’s 4x Super Resolution enhancement.
- Microsoft claims the Super-Resolution feature can upscale images up to 4K resolution within seconds, highlighting its efficiency.
Accessibility and availability: These new features are designed to make advanced image editing more accessible to a wider range of users.
- The updates are being introduced to Copilot Plus PCs, suggesting they may be limited to certain Windows devices initially.
- The Super-Resolution feature in Photos is available for free, potentially making high-quality image enhancement more accessible to users who don’t have professional editing software.
AI model improvements: Microsoft has made enhancements to the AI models powering these new features to improve performance and address potential concerns.
- The diffusion-based model used for the generative features has been updated to improve output quality and speed.
- Microsoft has implemented “built-in moderation” to help prevent misuse of the AI-powered tools, addressing potential ethical concerns associated with generative AI technology.
Implications for the creative industry: The introduction of these AI-powered features to widely-used Microsoft applications could have significant implications for the creative industry and everyday users.
- By bringing advanced editing capabilities to basic applications like Paint and Photos, Microsoft is potentially democratizing access to powerful image editing tools.
- This move could challenge the dominance of specialized software like Adobe Photoshop for certain tasks, especially among casual or non-professional users.
- The integration of AI into these commonly used applications may also serve to familiarize a broader audience with AI-powered creative tools, potentially accelerating the adoption of such technologies across various sectors.
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...