Microsoft removed Clippy from the modern versions of the Microsoft Office Suite, but the latest rumour hints at possible return of the ‘Clippy’ along with Microsoft’s other assistant Cortana. ZDnet reports that Microsoft is now privately testing a new Windows Phone app called Work Assistant. Though not much is known about Work Assistant, the project could be related to a project that Bill Gates is working on for Microsoft called Personal Agent. The Work Assistant though to be much like Clippy was originally uncovered by Windows Mobile Power User. It currently exists as an internal beta and is designed to help users perform Office tasks on Windows Phone. The Work Assistant App is about 2MB in size and is available for download on the Windows Phone Store and is compatible with devices running at least Windows Phone 8.1. Microsoft has stated it to be a ‘Work Assistant prototype.’ The Work Assistant also requires permission to access appointments, contacts, the internet and the device’s microphone to function. While unveiling Windows 10 last month, Microsoft had also demonstrated how how the Cortana personal assistant that originally debuted on Windows Phone could be used to find Office files stored locally on the PC or on the cloud in OneDrive. The Work Assistant may be an extension of that and it is speculated that Windows 10 could offer smartphone users a unique Cortana + Clippy amalgamation for assisting in day to day task. Bill Gates’s Personal Agent project Another possibility is that Work Assistant may be part of Bill Gates’s Personal Agent project, which he revealed during his latest Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) session.
