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Microsoft plans Linux tools and an RTX Spark desktop for Windows developers

Microsoft’s Build kickoff centers on developer-focused AI and software tooling, with executives highlighting expanding Linux tooling for Windows developers and a hardware-first approach to local development. The Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, built around Nvidia’s RTX Spark chip, offers up to 128GB of memory and an aluminum chassis designed to double as a heatsink, shipped with Windows 11 Pro and preinstalled developer configurations. This marks a tangible continuation of Microsoft’s hardware-software strategy following the Windows Dev Kit 2023/Project Volterra lineage, aiming to streamline native and cross-platform development workflows for Windows ecosystems. The announcements also reference MDASH, an AI-enabled multi-model agent scanning system, and Scout, an OpenClaw-based Autopilot that can access Microsoft 365 data to perform tasks, underscoring a broader push toward integrated AI-assisted tooling for developers and enterprises.