Cortana Was Almost Named Bingo Reveals Microsoft Exec

Microsoft released its AI-powered voice assistant named Cortana back in 2014. Since then, the Redmond giant has added various features to the voice assistant, named after the synthetic intelligence character from the Halo universe, to bring it on par with other industry-leading assistants like Google Assistant and Apple’s Siri. However, did you know that Microsoft almost gave a ridiculously funny name to the voice assistant before its official release?

In a recent interview with Big Bets, Microsoft’s Product Manager Sandeep Paruchuri revealed that the former CEO of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, wanted to release the voice assistant with the name, wait for it, Bingo!

While Cortana is currently available on Windows, Microsoft ended support for the voice assistant on Android and iOS earlier in 2021. Plus, with the release of Windows 11, Microsoft also eliminated Cortana from the first-boot experience, as detailed on its list of features removed from Windows. And if that is not enough, you can always uninstall Cortana from Windows 11 to speed up the search process and minimize the constant RAM usage on the platform.