Key Points
- Microsoft is including a dedicated Copilot key on the hardware of newer keyboards and laptops.
- You can remap the Windows key + C Copilot shortcut keys using PowerToys on your old hardware and set up your own dedicated key.
Recently, Microsoft has started adding a dedicated Copilot key to the keyboard of laptops launched in 2024. This key replaces the right keyboard “CTRL” key on the keyboard and will let you access Copilot at the press of a button, literally.
Copilot is an AI-powered assistant integrated into Windows OS as well as other Microsoft products that are powered by openAI’s ChatGPT language model. With Copilot, you cannot only make a query but also control certain Windows settings. Therefore, it makes sense to have a dedicated Copilot key.
Of course, you can also launch or close the Copilot side panel in Windows using the Windows key + C shortcut keys or the button in the taskbar, but there is nothing like having a dedicated Copilot key button right there on the keyboard, and launching the tool with muscle memory. But what about the users who do not wish to upgrade their hardware?
Do not worry, as you too can get a dedicated Copilot key right there on your existing keyboard. Of course, it won’t have the Copilot symbol (unless you put a sticker on it), but it will work nonetheless. This can be achieved by remapping the Cpilot shortcut keys (Windows key+ C) to another key on the keyboard.
The task can be achieved with many third-party tools and software, but my recommended product is Microsoft PowerToys – and the reason is right there in the name. PowerToys is a software developed by Microsoft itself that lets you manipulate the default Windows behavior.
In this guide, I will show you how to install PowerToys and then use it to remap the Windows Copilot keys to your preferred keyboard shortcut key.
Download and Install Microsoft PowerToys
The first thing you must do is install PowerToys which is available on the Microsoft Store app. Here is how:
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Open the Microsoft PowerToys Store page.
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Click Install.
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Click “Open Microsoft Store app“.
Open PowerToys in Microsoft Store -
In the Store app, click Install.
Install PowerToys
After performing the steps above, Microsoft PowerToys will be installed on your computer.
Remap Copilot keys with PowerToys
Once PowerToys is installed, use the following steps to remap the Copilot keys to one of your preferred keys:
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Launch the PowerToys app and click “Keyboard Manager” on the left.
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Click “Remap a key“.
Remap a key -
Now click “Add key remapping“.
Add key remapping -
Click Select in the “Select” section.
Select a key to use -
Now press a key on the keyboard that you want to use as a dedicated Copilot key, and then click OK.
Note: It is recommended that you use a key that you do not normally use so that its function does not interfere.
Enter your preferred key for Copilot -
Now click Select in the “To send” section.
Select keys to map -
Press the Windows Key + C shortcut keys and then click OK.
Define the current Copilot shortcut keys -
Click OK on the “Remap keys” window to save the changes.
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When asked for confirmation, click “Continue anyway“.
Save the changes
After performing the steps above, your preferred key (in step 5) will now be used instead of the Windows key + C combination keys.
In the example above, I used the function key F6. Therefore, press the F6 function key wl launch or close Copilot. Note that the default shortcut combination keys will still work.
In case you want to change the preferred key or delete the key mapping, return to the Keyboard Manager settings in PowerToys, click “Remap a key“, and make the necessary changes.
Takeaway
You do not need to upgrade your keyboard, or your entire laptop just to get the dedicated Copilot key.
Even if you do use Copilot a lot, there are other ways to open it. If you absolutely still want a dedicated key, you can use the method described in this post to use your existing keyboard and remap the Copilot shortcut to a dedicated keyboard key.
