Microsoft CEO Hints Next Xbox Could Be Like A PC

With the leap of Halo to PlayStation 5, some observers have facetiously declared the console wars to be over. Despite rumors that Microsoft is getting out of the console business, the company is working with AMD on future consoles and devices. Now, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has shared some thoughts about the next Xbox, which may indicate that it will be more like a PC.

“We want to do innovative work on the system side, on the console and PC. It’s kind of funny that people think about the [Xbox] console and PC as two different things,” said Nadella during an appearance on TBPN. “We built a console because we wanted to build a better PC, which could then perform for gaming. So I kind of want to revisit some of that conventional wisdom. But at the end of the day, console has an experience that is unparalleled … I’m really looking forward to the next console.”

Nadella went on to suggest that there may need to be new interactive media to compete with short-form videos, which he sees as Xbox’s real competition. A recent report stated that Nadella’s compensation this past year was $96.5 million, largely through stock options. That’s roughly 480 times what the average Microsoft employee makes.

Microsoft has been going through a lot of turmoil in the last few years, between layoffs, game cancellations, studio closures, and price hikes for both consoles and Game Pass subscriptions. A separate report lays the potential blame on Microsoft’s sky-high profit goals, which some observers believe are harming the company.

Earlier this month, Microsoft unveiled its latest campaign to integrate AI and voice controls into every Windows 11 machine. Xbox box gaming boss Phil Spencer also came out and said that the company uses AI for security purposes, rather than for creative decisions when making games. But it remains to be seen if that continues.