A user can also use the VA to access their calendar, email, contacts and browsing history. For instance, the app can offer to schedule a flight if it spots a message received from a travel booking service, and flag news articles it thinks the user will be interested in.
However, if some of the inferences it makes are wrong the user can enter a "notebook" function to amend the rules it follows.
"The point is the user is in control of his or her relationship with Cortana," Belfiore said.
