Microsoft says Cortana has 145 million users, announces new hardware partners

Build 2017 saw a rejuvenation in a number of key areas for Microsoft, many of which have little or nothing to do with consumers. Cloud computing and enterprise licensing might be popular subjects at Build, but they make for dreary dinner conversation. That’s not so with Cortana, the AI-powered digital assistant that Microsoft continues to pump new features into.

For good as reason, as it turns out. Microsoft announced this morning that Cortana has over 145 million users, around a third of the total 500 million users that Microsoft says have upgraded to Windows 10.

As a result of that support, Microsoft is continuing to open up Cortana’s capabilities to other developers in the form of Skills. By programming Cortana with a Skill, software makers can allow Windows 10 users to ask questions and send commands to their favorite apps in plain language. The Cortana Skills Kit is now open for public preview, and any app developers in the United States can download and push a Cortana Skill to the Bot Channel to try it out on the desktop and mobile versions of Cortana.

Microsoft has plans to take Cortana into new places as well. Harman Kardon’s Invoke speaker made some noise in the last few days with full Cortana integration built into its sleek, wireless shell. It won’t be the last to check that box off, with HP signing on to produce an unannounced Cortana-powered device, and Intel jumping on board to produce reference platforms for even more gadgets down the road.

Microsoft’s updated numbers on Cortana usage help explain some of the bold new places that Redmond has been pushing it into. The Windows team has been very responsive to user feedback, as well as that anonymous telemetry that many users unknowingly, or knowingly, opt into. If users are looking for more, and better, ways to utilize the voice commands in Windows 10 and on Windows Phone, who are we to argue?