Microsoft Is Turbocharging Notepad And Paint With New Generative AI Tools

When it comes to artificial intelligence (AI) tools, companies are leaving no stone unturned. Even Notepad, the humble little text editor in Windows, is getting a generative AI upgrade. Same goes for Paint, and if you're a Windows Insider in the Canary or Dev channel, you can begin testing the nifty new features right away in Windows 11 (with a caveat -- more on that in a moment).

Starting with Paint (version 11.2410.28.0), Microsoft is taking a page from more powerful image editors like Photoshop with generative fill and generative erase features. Using the generative fill tool, you can select a portion of your image and then type into a pop-up text prompt what you'd like to see generated.

"Whether you’re a seasoned artist looking to add intricate details or a hobbyist experimenting with new ideas, generative fill helps you fine-tune your digital art, with just enough AI to assist you in realizing your creative vision while remaining in full control of the output," Microsoft explains.

We haven't tested this ourselves and we imagine your results will vary, but having played with similar tools in Photoshop, we can say that at the very least, it holds a lot of promise. If you don't like Paint's first attempt at whatever you're trying to fill into your image, just press the "Try again" button. Alternatively, you can cycle through generated options via arrow buttons.

What about the caveat? At the outset, Microsoft is making this feature exclusive to Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PCs before testing it more broadly.

In addition, generative erase aims to make it easy to remove objects from a canvas without leaving a gaping hole. When you remove an object, the feature will attempt to seamlessly fill in the space left behind to blend in with the rest of the image. And unlike the generative fill tool, generative erase is available to Insiders on all Windows 11 PCs.

Meanwhile, AI upgrades are headed to Notepad (version 11.2410.15.0) as well. Instead of image manipulation, however, you can task AI with rewriting content, such as rephrasing sentences, altering the tone, and changing the length.

"Options to make your content longer or shorter and modifying the tone or format let you easily adjust your content for specific goals. The previous versions are still preserved in the current dialog, so you can easily revert to earlier versions if needed. If you prefer, you can disable the rewrite feature in app settings," Microsoft explains.

As with the generative erase feature for Paint, the Rewrite tool in Notepad is available to preview to all Windows 11 PCs.