Microsoft announced Windows 365, a cloud service that introduces a new way to experience Windows 10 or Windows 11 to businesses of all sizes. Windows 365 takes the operating system to the Microsoft cloud, streaming the full Windows experience — apps, data and settings — to personal or corporate devices.
Secure by design and built with the principles of Zero Trust, Windows 365 secures and stores information in the cloud, not on the device, providing a secure, productive experience for workers from interns and contractors to software developers and industrial designers. Windows 365 also creates a new hybrid personal computing category called Cloud PC, which uses both the power of the cloud and the capabilities of the device to provide a full, personalized Windows experience.
The announcement represents a groundbreaking development as organisations around the world grapple with the best ways to facilitate hybrid work models where employees are both on-site and distributed across the globe.
“With Windows 365, we’re creating a new category: the Cloud PC,” said Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO, Microsoft. “Just like applications were brought to the cloud with SaaS, we are now bringing the operating system to the cloud, providing organisations with greater flexibility and a secure way to empower their workforce to be more productive and connected, regardless of location.”
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A new computing paradigm for hybrid work
As the pandemic begins to ease in parts of the world, a new way of working is emerging, transformed by virtual processes and remote collaboration. In this more distributed environment, employees need access to corporate resources across locations and devices — and with cybersecurity threats on the rise, securing those resources is paramount.
“Hybrid work has fundamentally changed the role of technology in organisations today,” said Jared Spataro, corporate vice president, Microsoft 365. “With workforces more disparate than ever before, organizations need a new way to deliver a great productivity experience with increased versatility, simplicity and security. Cloud PC is an exciting new category of hybrid personal computing that turns any device into a personalised, productive and secure digital workspace. Announcement of Windows 365 is just the beginning of what will be possible as we blur the lines between the device and the cloud.”
Windows 365 helps employers solve challenges they’ve faced since long before the pandemic. Workers expect greater flexibility and more options to work from different locations, while still ensuring the security of the organization’s data. Seasonal workers can cycle on and off teams without the logistical challenges of issuing new hardware or securing personal devices — allowing the organisation to scale for busy periods more efficiently and securely. And companies can easily ensure specialised workers in creative, analytics, engineering or scientific roles have greater compute power and secure access to critical applications that they need.
Windows 365 will be generally available to businesses of all sizes starting on August 2, 2021.
