Copilot Keyboard launches in Japan, but it’s the return of the dolphin “Kyle” stealing the spotlight

Cute animated characters, including a dolphin, mushroom, water droplet, and fox, stand on a desktop backdrop. A forest and wooden bookshelf create a whimsical atmosphere. Japanese text is displayed. — Kyle the dolphin is an assistant that first appeared in Microsoft Office decades ago. It has now been brought back through Copilot Keyboard. (Image credit: Microsoft)

A new product by the Microsoft AI team improves the experience of entering Japanese characters on your PC. Following six months of testing, Copilot Keyboard is now available for free on Windows.

Copilot Keyboard is an IME (Input Methad Editor), meaning it allows users to input text from languages that do not work well with a QWERTY keyboard.

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Copilot Keyboard interface showcasing AI-powered typing assistant features. Text explains importing settings and cloud-powered enhancements. Speech bubble containing Japanese text suggestions. — You can customize the look of Copilot Keyboard, including enabling AI characters.(Image credit: Future)

Copilot Keyboard appears to be a useful tool that makes it easier to input Japanese characters. I confess that I cannot speak, write, or read Japanese, but I'll take the word of the Windows team behind the tool.

It also has a cool concept that I think should be tested in the main Copilot app. When you install Copilot Keyboard, it can place a floating Copilot button on your desktop that you can drag and drop items into.

I'd like to see a similar floating button added to Copilot for Windows as an option. I'm sure some people would be against the feature being on by default or built into Windows 11, so it makes more sense to have it as an optional feature within an app.

If you don't want to have the Copilot logo appear on your desktop but still want the drag and drop functionality, Copilot Keyboard has you covered.

You can set Copilot Keyboard to show the Copilot icon on your desktop, which is the default, or show one of the AI characters.

Copilot Keyboard includes several AI characters, including one that will look familiar to some who used Office in the 90s. Kyle the dolphin first appeared in Office 97 in Japanese editions of the productivity suite.

Kyle eventually became available in other regions, though you had to go out of your way to download the dolphin. Kyle stuck around for about a decade before being retired.

The return of Kyle is a nice nostalgia bump for those who used the assistant years ago.

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Sean Endicott is a news writer and apps editor for Windows Central with 11+ years of experience. A Nottingham Trent journalism graduate, Sean has covered the industry’s arc from the Lumia era to the launch of Windows 11 and generative AI. Having started at Thrifter, he uses his expertise in price tracking to help readers find genuine hardware value.

Beyond tech news, Sean is a UK sports media pioneer. In 2017, he became one of the first to stream via smartphone and is an expert in AP Capture systems. A tech-forward coach, he was named 2024 BAFA Youth Coach of the Year. He is focused on using technology—from AI to Clipchamp—to gain a practical edge.

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