Notepad and Paint Get Powerful New AI and Markdown Upgrades for Windows Insiders

Microsoft is giving two of Windows 11’s most iconic inbox apps—Notepad and Paint—another meaningful upgrade, with fresh Markdown tools, AI-powered creativity, and better controls now rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels.

New Windows Insider blog post on Notepad and Paint

In a new Windows Insider blog post, Principal Group Product Manager for Windows Inbox Apps Dave Grochocki outlines the latest wave of enhancements arriving first in the Canary and Dev Channels on Windows 11. The post, published January 21, 2026, focuses on deeper Markdown support and AI streaming for Notepad, plus a new AI-powered Coloring book mode and smarter fill controls in Paint.

These updates continue Microsoft’s strategy of turning classic inbox apps into showcases for Copilot-era experiences while still keeping them approachable for everyday users. For Windows Insiders, they also provide an early look at how AI and lightweight formatting are becoming part of the default Windows toolkit rather than optional add-ons.

Notepad gets richer Markdown and a new welcome experience

Notepad (version 11.2512.10.0) is picking up several quality-of-life improvements that make it feel less like a barebones editor and more like a lean Markdown-focused writing tool.

• Expanded Markdown formatting: Notepad’s “lightweight formatting” now supports additional Markdown syntax including strikethrough and nested lists, on top of the headings, basic lists, and other formatting Microsoft introduced previously.

• Multiple ways to format: Users can trigger these features via the formatting toolbar, familiar keyboard shortcuts, or by typing Markdown syntax directly, which should appeal both to casual note-takers and power users who live in plain text.

• Better structure for notes and docs: The ability to create nested lists makes it easier to outline documents, task lists, and technical notes in a structured way without leaving Notepad.

Alongside formatting, Microsoft is also adding a new welcome experience designed to make Notepad’s evolving feature set more discoverable.

• “What’s New” dialog: On first run, Notepad now shows an updated dialog that highlights key capabilities such as Markdown support and AI text features, giving both new and returning users a quick tour of what’s possible.

• Easy to revisit later: If you close the dialog, you can open it again at any time by clicking the megaphone icon in the top-right corner of the Notepad toolbar, turning it into an ongoing “what’s new” hub rather than a one-off splash screen.

Faster AI Write, Rewrite, and Summarize in Notepad

Microsoft is also continuing its push to bring Copilot-style AI into everyday text workflows with improvements to Notepad’s AI text features.

• Streaming AI responses: Notepad is expanding support for streaming results so that outputs from Write, Rewrite, and Summarize start appearing immediately instead of forcing you to wait for the full response.

• Local and cloud scenarios: Whether the AI is running locally on a Copilot+ PC or backed by cloud processing, the streaming behavior is designed to feel consistent—results trickle in live so you can read, copy, or cancel faster.

• Sign-in required: To use these AI text features, you’ll need to sign in with a Microsoft account inside Notepad, which aligns with how other Copilot experiences on Windows authenticate and personalize content.

For anyone already using Notepad as a quick drafting space or code-adjacent note tool, these AI upgrades turn it into a lightweight companion for rewriting, summarizing logs, or drafting boilerplate without leaving the app. Microsoft is also explicitly encouraging Windows Insiders to share feedback about these changes via Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Apps > Notepad, signaling that the feature set could evolve quickly based on early reactions.

Paint introduces AI Coloring book for Copilot+ PCs

On the creative side, Paint (version 11.2512.191.0) is getting one of its most playful AI features yet: a Coloring book mode that turns text prompts into printable, colorable line art.

• AI-generated coloring pages: From the Copilot menu in Paint, you can choose the Coloring book option, enter a text prompt such as “a cute fluffy cat on a donut” or “a house with a garden and fence,” and click Generate.

• Multiple variations per prompt: Paint will return a set of unique coloring book pages based on your description, letting you browse through options that match your theme or style.

• Flexible output options: Once you see a design you like, you can Add to canvas, copy it, or save it for later use, making it easy to tweak, print, or combine multiple scenes into a single project.

This feature is not universal, however. Coloring book is explicitly limited to Copilot+ PCs and requires you to sign in with your Microsoft account.

• Copilot+ requirement: The feature is designed to tap into the AI capabilities of Copilot+ hardware, which includes an NPU and optimizations for on-device AI workloads.

• Account sign-in: As with Notepad’s AI, Microsoft uses account sign-in for access and presumably for managing AI experiences and settings across devices.

The result is that Paint becomes a simple creative playground for families, educators, and hobbyists who want quick line-art pages without learning complex design tools. For Windows Insiders, it also offers another practical example of how Copilot+ hardware can enable fun, “everyday” AI alongside more serious productivity tasks.

Finer control with Paint’s fill tolerance slider

Beyond AI, Paint is also picking up a more traditional graphics editing upgrade: a fill tolerance slider for the Fill (paint bucket) tool.

• Adjustable precision: The tolerance slider lets you control how strictly the Fill tool respects boundaries and color differences, affecting how far a fill operation spreads across adjacent pixels.

• Clean vs creative fills: Lower tolerance values can produce very clean, sharp fills that stay tightly within outlined shapes, while higher tolerance settings can create more expressive, blended fills that jump across subtle gradients or nearly matching colors.

• Simple UI placement: To use it, you select the Fill tool and then adjust the slider on the left side of the canvas until you get the fill behavior you want, experimenting as you go.

This kind of control is especially useful when working with the new Coloring book pages, scanned sketches, or any artwork with imperfect edges where a single-click fill might otherwise leave jagged gaps or spill into unwanted areas. It also nudges Paint a bit closer to the behavior of more advanced image editors, while keeping the interaction simple enough for casual users and students.

Rollout and what’s next for Windows Insiders

As with many recent inbox app updates, these Notepad and Paint improvements are being delivered through app updates rather than full Windows feature releases and are rolling out first to Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels on Windows 11. External coverage suggests that, after initial testing, Microsoft plans to bring these enhancements to the broader Windows 11 user base, with the Coloring book feature remaining tied to supported Copilot+ PCs.

Microsoft is again directing early adopters to use Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Apps > Paint if they encounter issues or have suggestions, which has become a standard part of the Windows Insider feedback loop. For power users, creators, and everyday note-takers alike, this Insider wave shows that even “simple” apps like Notepad and Paint are being steadily reshaped by Markdown, AI, and modern UX touches—without losing their familiar feel.