Microsoft unveils wave of new Windows 11 features in Paint and Notepad — with better Markdown support and a new AI Color Book mode coming soon

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Microsoft is adding several new features to Notepad and Paint on Windows 11 to improve the apps for regular users.

Notepad is getting an upgrade with better Markdown support. You’ll now be able to use features like strikethrough and nested lists. You can format text using standard Markdown shortcuts, or by using the formatting toolbar at the top of the app.

Notepad is getting more than just Markdown improvements! A new “Welcome Experience” popup will now appear whenever the app is updated with new features. Because Notepad is updated so often, this will help users easily see what’s changed and what’s new.

Microsoft explains that Notepad’s text generation will feel quicker because of a feature called “streaming.” Instead of waiting for the entire response to finish, the text will appear live as it’s being created, making it seem much faster.

Microsoft Paint is getting a new feature called Coloring Book for Copilot+ PCs. It uses the PC’s built-in AI chip to create black-and-white outlines that you can color in. To use it, open Paint and choose “Coloring book” from the Copilot menu. Then, type what you want to see in your coloring book and click “Generate.” Paint will create custom coloring pages based on your description.

The paint tool now has a more adjustable fill feature. You can control how aggressively it fills an area, making it so the fill stays within tighter boundaries and doesn’t spread as much.

We’re releasing these new features now to Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels, and everyone with Windows 11 will get them in the next few weeks.

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2026-01-22 00:40