How to change Copilot Key action in Windows 11

I will teach you How to change the action of the Copilot key in Windows 11

In this post, we will show you how to change the Copilot key action in Windows 11. Microsoft introduced a dedicated Copilot key on certain new devices, such as the Surface Pro, which initially launched the Copilot app. However, soon the company changed its approach to integrating AI into Windows. Instead of integrating the Copilot AI chatbot directly into the operating system, it moved to offering it as a web-based app, which made the Copilot key lose its default functionality. As a result, Microsoft introduced the option to customize the key action.

How to change the action of the Copilot key in Windows 11

In this post, we will show you how to change the Copilot key action in Windows 11. Microsoft introduced a dedicated Copilot key on certain new devices, such as the Surface Pro, which initially launched the Copilot app. However, soon the company changed its approach to integrating AI into Windows. Instead of integrating the Copilot AI chatbot directly into the operating system, it moved to offering it as a web-based app, which made the Copilot key lose its default functionality. As a result, Microsoft introduced the option to customize the key action.

While the Copilot key still serves its original purpose (the key will still launch Copilot on devices that have the Copilot app installed), users will have the flexibility to customize the Copilot key to open Windows Search or any app that uses the MSIX package format.

Change Copilot Key Action in Windows 11 

To change the Copilot key action on your Windows 11 PC, you can use one of these methods: 

• Use the Settings app

•  Use the Group Policy Editor 

Let’s take a look at this in detail.

1] Use the Settings app

 Press Win + I to open the Settings app. Click on the Personalization option on the left pane. Scroll down a bit and click on Text Input on the right pane.

Then, click on the drop-down menu next to the “Customize the Copilot key on the keyboard” option. You will see three options: 

• Copilot – Launches the Windows Copilot app when the key is pressed.

• Search – Opens the Windows Search experience with the Copilot key.

• Custom – Allows you to select a specific app (installed via Microsoft Store or those that use the signed MSIX package format) to launch with the Copilot key.

Select the desired option.

If you select “Custom,” a pop-up menu will appear. Choose an app and click Select to submit your choice. Close the app settings.

The next time you press the Copilot physical key on the keyboard, the specified app will launch.

If you don’t see this setting, update your Windows and make sure you have installed KB5044380.

2] Use Group Policy Editor 

This method applies to the entire system and all user accounts on the device. However, you must be logged in as an administrator to make these changes. Also, note that the Local Group Policy Editor is only available in Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions, so this option will not be available in Windows 11 Home editions unless you enable GPEDIT.MSC manually.

Press Win + R, type gpedit.msc in the Run dialog box, and press Enter.

This will open the Local Group Policy Editor. In the editor policy window, navigate to the following location on the left side of the window: Settings User Configuration Administrative Templates Windows Components Windows Copilot On the right side of the window, double-click Set Copilot Hardware Key to edit the policy.

To change the application that opens with the Copilot key, select the Enabled option. Enter the AUMID/AppId of the app you are interested in launching in the options box and click Apply and then OK.

We have published a separate post explaining how to check the App User Model ID of installed apps on Windows 11. You can refer to the post to find the AUMID of the app you want to open by pressing the Copilot key, such as Microsoft Edge or any other MSIX-packaged app.

Close the Local Group Policy Editor and restart your PC to apply the changes.

The settings were made via the Local Group Policy Editor regarding the Copilot hardware key is stored in the Windows Registry. Specifically, the above setting is saved as a string value named SetCopilotHardwareKey (REG_SZ) within the following registry path: HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwarePoliciesMicrosoftWindowsCopilotKey If you set the Set Copilot hardware key policy to Not Configured (revert to default), the SetCopilotHardwareKey (REG_SZ) string value in the registry key will be deleted.

Disable the Copilot hardware key for specific applications

 If you want to disable the Copilot hardware key to prevent it from launching any application, including Windows Copilot, follow these steps: Open the Local Group Policy Editor and navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Copilot.

In the right pane, enable the Set Copilot hardware key policy and select the Disabled option. Click OK to continue.applied, the option to customize the Copilot key within Settings becomes grayed out and no longer available for a single user to change.

Note:

•  If the policy is set to Not Configured, Copilot will open if it is available in that country or region.

• The customization option for the Copilot key is only available on keyboards designed with a dedicated key for the chatbot.

• If the setting is not visible on your Windows 11 PC, it may be because you are not running the latest preview build that includes this feature. Check the version of Windows you are running and install the latest updates, if available.

• Only apps from the Microsoft Store or those bundled in the signed package. It should be perfectly doable to map the MSIX format to the Copilot key in such a way that many commonly installed applications, such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and VLC, would fall outside the mapping.

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