Microsoft Revives the Spirit of Clippy with Mico, the New Animated Face of Copilot
Nearly 30 years after Clippy, the iconic paperclip from Microsoft Office, the Redmond company is once again attempting to give a face to its virtual assistant. Its name: Mico, short for Microsoft Copilot.
This small, animated, and expressive character is now the new incarnation of Copilot in Windows 11.
Mico, a “more human” Copilot
Unveiled at the Copilot Fall Release 2025, Mico is described as a “warm, expressive, and customizable” presence. This colorful little bubble reacts in real time to voice, changes color based on the emotional tone of the conversation, and actively “listens” to the user.
Much like Clippy in the past, Mico is optional — you can disable it — but it is enabled by default in the voice mode of Copilot. For those feeling nostalgic, an Easter egg is already planned: tap on Mico multiple times, and the little assistant will transform into Clippy.
More than a gimmick: a contextual and educational assistant
This “humanized” version relies on the language models of Copilot, which can understand the context of a discussion and adapt to the user’s tone. Microsoft aims to correct the mistakes of its previous assistants, Cortana or Bob, who lacked contextual intelligence.
Thanks to a new memory feature, Mico can retain certain elements of your interactions, recall previously mentioned facts, or tailor its responses according to your preferences.
It also introduces a “Learn Live” mode, designed as a Socratic tutor: the assistant doesn’t just provide answers but guides the user in their thinking with interactive tables and visual cues.
“Real Talk” and natural conversation
Another innovation is Real Talk, a mode of conversation that is smoother and more realistic. In this setting, Copilot is no longer just a passive assistant; it can contradict, nuance, or challenge your ideas, promoting a more “human” and less artificial discussion.
Microsoft aims to “create an AI that brings you back to real life, deepens human connections, and earns your trust,” according to Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of Microsoft AI.
Copilot gains new collaborative features
In addition to Mico, Microsoft is adding several major features:
- Copilot Groups: discussions for up to 32 people with the assistant.
- Memory & Personalization: Copilot can retain the context of previous conversations.
- Copilot for Health: provides answers based on reliable medical sources like Harvard Health and helps find doctors by specialty and location.
- Edge Integration: the browser becomes a true “AI browser,” capable of summarizing tabs, comparing information, or even booking a hotel automatically.
These new features are available in the United States starting today and will roll out to the UK, Canada, and other countries in the coming weeks.
Clippy 3.0?
With Mico, Microsoft is clearly embracing its legacy. Clippy, Cortana, Bob, Rover… a series of past attempts to make computers “more human.” But this time, generative AI is changing the game: Mico is no longer limited to a fixed set of responses.
It remains to be seen whether users will embrace talking to an animated bubble on their screen — or if, once again, the assistant will end up in the museum of ideas that were ahead of their time.
