Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, sat down with The Wall Street Journal to talk about the company’s latest announcement: Windows 11. Microsoft unveiled the big update earlier today. So of course the chief executive is ready to talk about what’s new — and what he’d still like to see.
One of the biggest changes for Windows 11 is actually its digital storefront. Microsoft is making huge inroads to improving the experience of the Windows Store — and that includes allowing for third-party storefronts. To that end, Amazon’s Appstore is one of the first, and it means that Windows 11 can run Android apps.
In the interview with the WSJ, Nadella points out that the new Windows Store is all about inclusion, about having multiple marketplaces. The chief executive wants to make sure that Windows Store stands on its own, but it doesn’t want to limit availability for the end user, either.
So, what about Apple? There’s no doubt that the company captained by Tim Cook is still taking a very different path from Microsoft. But that doesn’t mean Microsoft can’t try to find some way to make its own services work better with Apple’s, right? Well, Nadella certainly sees that as a possibility — insofar that Microsoft’s open to it, anyway.
When asked about that, about integrating Microsoft’s services with the iPhone, Nadella had this to say:
We’d love to make sure that it works better. We do everything we can. Like anything Apple wants to do with Windows, rather it’s iTunes, iMessage, or whatever, we welcome that. But, overall, we want to make sure our software runs great on Apple devices.
So, Nadella is more than happy to make sure that Windows is a place where Apple’s services, like iMessage, can exist and prosper. Does that mean it’s going to happen? Not at all. Maybe not even a little bit. But the groundwork is there, so if there’s ever a time when Apple changes its collective mind and decides to change things up, at least it’s possible.
What if, right?