It might not get the same kind of attention as Google and Apple, but Microsoft is still one of the biggest and most powerful tech companies operating today. It runs Azure, one of the biggest cloud computing services, and maintains Windows 11 and the whole Office suite of software. It also makes plenty of Surface hardware and has a whole slew of gaming products, including the Xbox Series X. But the company is ever expanding — building new hardware, acquiring new game studios, and making sure that even if Microsoft doesn’t run your phone, it can touch plenty of the apps on it.
If you’re feeling particularly spreadsheet-y today, this BBC podcast highlights some interesting details about the creation of Excel, including Gabe Newell’s involvement and how developers wanted to name it “Number Buddy.”
Also, make sure to check out this wild piece on competitive Excel from my colleague David Pierce.
A new Agent Mode comes to Office apps today, alongside an Office Agent in Copilot chat.
There’s been a bit of backlash to the Xbox Ally handheld’s $999 price tag, which will be a stiff test of consumer interest in expensive console hardware. But it’s also a test of Microsoft’s “everything is an Xbox” philosophy, because this sure is expensive for an Xbox that only plays PC games, and not everyone is sold:
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Only Microsoft can release a thousand dollar device branded “Xbox” that can’t play Xbox games. Only a millionaire executive at this specific company could have hallucinated this.
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Microsoft and Asus revealed last month that the new Xbox Ally handhelds will be launching on October 16th, but there was a distinct lack of pricing and preorder information. Now, it looks like we’re going to get both later today. Asus has started teasing on Facebook that preorders are “dropping soon” with a countdown that ends at 8PM ET / 5PM PT today.
IO Interactive’s 007 First Light will tell the story of a young James Bond, and the developer is adding another cast member to the list today. Gemma Chan, Eternals and Crazy Rich Asians, will star as Selina Tan, MI6’s head of tactical simulation. This is a new character created specifically for 007 First Light, and not to be confused with Q (played by Alastair Mackenzie). 007 First Light launches March 27th, 2026.
Microsoft’s Xbox Tokyo Game Show broadcast kicks off early today at 3AM PT / 6AM ET / 11AM UK. Announcements from the show will include Forza Horizon 6, which just leaked early thanks to an official teaser trailer on Instagram.
The partnership will “help employees across German governments, administrations and research institutions use our technology to spend more time on people, not paperwork,” according to the blog post.
I first revealed that Microsoft has created limited edition Windows XP-themed Crocs last month, and now Microsoft has officially started teasing them. These Crocs will come with a six-pack of Microsoft Jibbitz, with nostalgic options like the the Internet Explorer icon and Clippy. Microsoft’s post on Instagram asks “who leaked this?!” Hands up, that’s me.
As soon as I saw the Halo memes of the orange iPhone 17 Pro and green TechWoven case, I couldn’t resist.
