AI Helps Build Native Windows 11 Speed Test
Microsoft's Windows team says agentic AI built much of the Insider-only tool, a sign of how quickly small OS utilities can now be prototyped.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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Microsoft Windows design leader Marcus Ash said agentic AI handled much of the work building a Windows 11 speed test tool, which is available to Insiders on the experimental channel as a Quick Settings feature. The tool is shipped only to Insiders in Build 26340.9767, not to the general public, and neither Ash nor Microsoft named the AI models used.
Why it matters
The account offers a concrete data point on how far AI-assisted development is reaching into shipping operating system features, a question the industry is actively testing. It also shows a design team moving from a feature idea to a working prototype in a single day, which signals how quickly small utilities may be built and iterated.
The source describes a one-day prototype and a shipped Insider build (26340.9767, based on Windows 11 version 26H2), but gives no measured performance figures for the test itself. Microsoft has not said what share of the code agentic AI produced or which tools were used.
The players
Marcus Ash
Heads Design and Research for Windows and Devices at Microsoft, leading the team that shapes the Windows user experience.
Pavan Davuluri
Windows chief at Microsoft who assigned the speed test request to the design team.
Diego Baca
Member of Microsoft's design team who built a functioning prototype of the speed test in a single day.
The details
The speed test runs from a Speed test tile, the Wi-Fi and Cellular flyouts, or a right-click on the taskbar network icon, and shows ping, download, and upload results inside the flyout without opening a browser window. Connectivity engineers then integrated the prototype into the operating system with partner teams, and Windows chief Pavan Davuluri assigned the request to designer Diego Baca. Agentic AI, meaning AI systems that carry out multistep tasks with limited human direction, handled much of the building work, according to Ash.
Timeline
September 2025: an earlier version appeared in testing as a shortcut that opened Bing in a browser.
Early 2026: the earlier version reached the general Windows 11 public through the KB5077241 preview.
October 23: Build 26340.9767 carrying the new speed test was released to Insiders.
October 30: Marcus Ash posted on X describing the AI-built tool.
The Tech Race
The native speed test follows an earlier Bing-opening shortcut tested in September 2025 and delivered to the public in early 2026 via KB5077241. The rebuild as an in-OS flyout marks a shift from a web handoff to a built-in utility, though the source does not place it against any named competitor's product.
The speed test is available only to Windows 11 Insiders on the experimental channel, who can enable the tile through Settings > Windows Update > Windows Insider Program > Feature flags. The source does not give a date for wider release to the general public.
The takeaway
Watch whether Microsoft moves the speed test from Insider builds into a general Windows 11 update and whether it publishes figures on how much code the AI produced. Insiders who want to test the feature now can enable it through the feature flags path in Windows Insider settings.
Further reading
For broader context on how AI tools are reshaping software development, explore Artificial Intelligence coverage on We are the Frontier.
Source note: This article includes information reported by BetaNews.
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