Microsoft’s enshittification of Windows 11 has taken such a bad turn during 2025 that it becomes the latest cool thing to hate the company and its products on social media.
AI Hallucinations
Although, the main culprit behind this is the company itself as it was found spreading fake rumours about a supposedly AI-focused, subscription-based Windows 12 coming in 2026 doesn’t fix the issue.
Interestingly, most of this discussion traces back to articles which were published on some AI-generated forums’ content and tech publications.
Investigation indicates that multiple AI-driven websites were referencing one another as sources, this way they were creating a loop of AI hallucinations that made fabricated claims appear credible.
Whatever be the case but the damage was already done as this story got pushed into Reddit,.
In response the users clouded the comments section with their long-standing aversion towards Microsoft.
The next move was more interesting as those Reddit threads and posts on X also became “sources” for AI tools, as it increased the models’ confidence and caused the hallucinations to spread further.
The Windows 12 rumour is built on old leaks and outdated concepts, probably by AI
Why Would This Happen?
As per these rumors, Hudson Valley is going to be the upcoming Windows 12 release. On the contrary, Hudson Valley was the internal codename for Windows 11 version 24H2, which has already shipped.
Coming to 24H2, we already know that it looks nothing like the redesign described in the rumor, and none of the supposed UI changes or architectural shifts ever appeared.
Several years ago, the supposed “leaks” talked about the CorePC, which was a concept discussed in actual leaks.
When it comes to CorePC, it was to be a modular Windows architecture that could separate system components, improve update reliability, and scale the OS for different device categories.
While going through years of speculation, CorePC has never appeared publicly and there is no evidence that CorePC is part of Microsoft’s current Windows roadmap.
Rumors also talked about the idea that Windows 12 could become subscription-based as earlier in 2023, some internal references to subscription status flags had people concerned that Microsoft might move Windows to a recurring payment model.
But later on, it was found that those internal flags referred to a cloud-based service for enterprises, not an actual OS for consumers.
After that comes the so-called “new” interface in Windows 12 leak which talks about a floating taskbar with rounded corners, system indicators moved to the top-right corner, and a large search bar centered at the top of the screen.
Interstingly these descriptions are identical to a concept interface Microsoft showed internally and during Ignite 2022, which leaked online at the time.
But, the design prototype never shipped and it has not appeared in any modern Windows builds.
If we follow the story, all the references to Hudson Valley, CorePC, and subscription-based OS were all happening several years ago.
So, the story is that at one point during the Panos Panay era, there were internal plans to ship a new Windows generation around 2024.
Although, it was impacted by the leadership changes inside Microsoft’s Windows division, so the direction was scrapped, and the work ultimately became Windows 11 version 24H2 instead.
It seems that the rumor still spread widely online, mostly due to the non-existent trust that users have in Microsoft.
If you are wondering regarding the actual Windows 12 launch, the answer is almost certainly not in 2026 as presently the focus on fixing Windows 11 itself.
The company’s priority appears to be addressing long-standing complaints about performance, reliability, and the AI overload presently.
