Microsoft Outlook has just unveiled a groundbreaking feature: personalized, AI-powered themes. Available to users with a Copilot Pro subscription or business accounts, this feature provides a new level of customization for Outlook’s interface. Now, users on iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and the web can experience email in a unique, dynamic way that aligns with their personal style or even their location.
Customize Themes with Generative AI
Outlook’s new “Themes by Copilot” allows users to create themes based on over 100 pre-defined locations or personalize it further with a theme based on their current location. For those who enjoy a theme that evolves, dynamic options enable updates to the display every few hours, daily, weekly, or monthly. This makes email not only a functional tool but also a visually engaging experience tailored to individual tastes.
Bringing Location-Based Inspiration to Your Inbox
Outlook’s My Location theme, which is available if location permissions are enabled, integrates a user’s current location to display imagery inspired by their surroundings. Whether traveling or at home, users can enjoy imagery that mirrors their local environment. Additionally, there’s a weather-based theme that visually reflects current conditions, offering a real-time connection to the outside world within the Outlook experience.
Artistic Choices: Realistic, Oil Painting, or Cartoon
Once users select or generate a theme, they can choose how it appears—opting for a realistic rendering, an oil painting effect, or a cartoon style. This variety brings a layer of fun and creativity to an otherwise professional tool, helping users feel more at home in their digital workspace.
Access and Setup: Customization Made Easy
AI-generated themes can be easily accessed within Outlook’s Appearance Settings. Microsoft says the idea behind this addition is to make email feel more personal, akin to decorating one’s desk with personal touches.
Outlook Steps Ahead with AI Personalization
While Google has introduced AI productivity features within Gmail, the personalized AI themes set Outlook apart, providing users with a creative freedom that Gmail currently lacks. Microsoft’s new themes bring a fresh, user-centered perspective, merging AI with artistic customization.
This release follows Microsoft’s recent AI-powered updates to other Windows applications like Notepad and Paint, expanding its AI-driven personalization tools across its ecosystem. With this release, Microsoft Outlook takes a step forward in combining productivity with aesthetic personalization, making digital interactions more engaging and user-focused.