Microsoft Engineer Claims Native Apps Are Making a Comeback, Potentially Reviving Windows 11’s Battle Against Web Applications

Recent statements from a prominent engineer at Microsoft indicate a resurgence of native applications, aligning well with the company’s revitalization efforts for Windows 11. This development has sparked interest among both developers and users alike.

The Windows Store, Microsoft’s primary platform for PC applications, has seen a surge in web apps, particularly favored for their security and reliability on Windows 11. Over the years, the Microsoft Store has improved significantly, enhancing its performance and providing a diverse range of apps created with various development frameworks.

By allowing developers flexibility in their app-building processes, Microsoft hoped to encourage a greater number of applications to enter the Microsoft Store, enhancing the overall Windows 11 experience.

Notably, many popular applications—including Netflix and WhatsApp—have transitioned away from native Windows applications, originally developed with frameworks like WinUI, towards Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) based on WebView2. Our testing revealed that the WhatsApp PWA can consume as much as 600MB of RAM on a PC equipped with 8GB of RAM, even when idle.

The latest WhatsApp using 600MB RAM on a PC with 8GB RAM, while doing nothing

This issue is not isolated to WhatsApp; other applications based on Electron, such as Discord, can consume up to 4GB of RAM, despite incorporating features to manage memory usage by quietly restarting the application.

While PWAs are often lightweight and simpler to deploy, they frequently lack essential functionalities like offline access that are standard in their native counterparts. Users have expressed their dissatisfaction on platforms like Reddit, criticizing a growing trend towards PWAs that hampers the overall experience of Windows OS.

Recognizing these user concerns, Microsoft has initiated plans to improve the app ecosystem within Windows 11.

Microsoft’s Strategy for Windows 11 Application Enhancement

Rudy Huyn, a Partner Architect within Microsoft overseeing Store and File Explorer development, confirmed that the company intends to create completely native applications for Windows 11. Although specifics regarding the timeline remain undisclosed, the intention is clear.

Recently, David Fowler, a Microsoft Engineer with significant experience in. NET and ASP. NET Core, shared a post on X asserting that “Native apps are back.” This signals Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to developing “100%” native applications for Windows 11, moving away from the dominance of web wrappers.

Fowler’s robust background and position at Microsoft lend credibility to his assertion. His statement hints at a strategic pivot within the company towards enhancing the native application experience on Windows 11, following a period where many native apps have been supplanted by web-based solutions.

Internal developments suggest that Microsoft is shifting essential Windows 11 functionalities away from web-based components, notably transitioning the Start menu from React-based elements to WinUI for improved responsiveness and efficiency.

While neither Fowler nor Huyn provided comprehensive details about the execution of this vision, it is likely that the recently launched. NET 10 framework will play a crucial role in facilitating this transition..NET 10 introduces a feature referred to as Native AOT (Ahead of Time), which is expected to dramatically reduce application start-up times while also minimizing memory usage—much to the relief of developers.

Challenges Associated with WebView and PWAs in Microsoft’s Own Applications

The web-based Copilot application, for instance, has exhibited excessive resource usage, consuming up to 500MB of RAM while running in the background and hitting 1GB during active use.

If developers opt for. NET 10, it may help avoid such resource-intensive scenarios, steering away from cross-platform frameworks like React Native or Flutter that tend to rely on web technologies.

New Windows 11 Start menu with Pinned apps, Recommendations and Category view for all apps

Despite the theoretical advantages of native applications, Microsoft faces the substantial challenge of persuading developers to favor native solutions over web-based applications.

It will be critical to observe whether Microsoft will introduce incentives for native app creation to drive a larger selection of native applications available in the Microsoft Store. Before establishing these incentives, however, the company must first demonstrate the tangible benefits of its renewed application initiatives by converting its own offerings to “100%” native applications on Windows 11.

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