The update is optional for now but it should start rolling out to all Windows 11 users next month.
It’s no secret that Microsoft wanted to put ads in the Windows 11 Start menu. The tech giant started testing ads in its beta releases a couple of weeks ago, and prior versions of Windows had advertising in the Start menu as well. As of Wednesday, the update adding those ads to the Start menu is rolling out.
According to Microsoft, the Start menu ads will be comprised of Microsoft Store apps chosen from a «small set of curated developers.» The ads will appear in the Recommended section of the Start menu which previously only showed documents and images that the user had recently used. When you click on an ad, you’ll be redirected to the Microsoft Store to download the app.
Microsoft isn’t just adding advertisements to the Start menu. The update changelog also notes that frequently used apps already installed on the user’s machine will also appear in the Recommended section alongside the ads. Apps will appear there only if they aren’t already pinned to the taskbar or Start menu.
For the time being, the update is optional. You can find it by navigating to Windows Update > Advanced Options > Optional updates where you can install update KB5036980.
In addition to Start menu ads, the update includes some additional fixes and improvements. Notably, this update fixes an issue where widget icons on the taskbar can be pixelated or fuzzy. Lock screen widgets are also improved, and Microsoft says that they’ll be more reliable moving forward. Some of minor bug fixes include fixing an issue with the Japanese 106 keyboard layout and a freezing issue with the Settings app. The full documentation is available on Microsoft’s support website.
So far, I’ve had the update installed for a few hours and have yet to see any ads, although some users and publications have been able to get them to show up. It’s likely that Microsoft hasn’t turned on advertising for the majority of users yet and will wait to do so until the update rolls out to more machines.
The Windows 11 search user interface also has advertising.Ads in Windows are nothing new
The Start menu is only the latest victim in Microsoft’s plan to add advertising to as many parts of Windows as it can.
