Microsoft is working on a major update to the Windows 11 Start menu that will brings back Live Tiles, sort of. There will be a floating dock ("Compainon") displayed next to the main menu with adaptive cards. The Dev channel build 26212 includes an early implementation of the Live Tiles/cards, so we can take a look.
A component referred as "CompanionCardReader" (Windows.UI.Shell.Internal.AdaptiveCards) implements a dedicated panel to host the widget addition. It can appear both to the left and to the right of the main Start menu. The Dock side is up to the developer. There is a high chance that third-party developers will be able to create their own widgets for placement in Start.
The feature is hidden in the mentioned Insider build, and its early piece of code is not complete. However, a research done by the famous Windows researcher @thebookisclosed made it possible to demonstrate the new user interface.
The Live Tiles in the Start menu companion are provided by modern apps, the ones you usually get from the Store. The inbox weather app is a good example of such apps. There is a JSON specification for that.
It is worth noting that this new iteration of live tiles is not linked to existing Widgets. They are a different thing.
The adaptive card companions will have a special option in the Settings app. Under Settings > Personalization > Start, there will be a list of installed Companions with on/off option to show or hide a specific adaptive card. It can also have a a link to the provider's site for customization, similar to the news feed of Widgets.
It is not yet know if/when this new feature will be officially announced. It may be just one of many internal experiments that often get scrapped out. But if Microsoft is really confident about expanding the Start menu, then the companions may be announced already on May 20 at a special Windows event.
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They should let us resize the Start Menu and replace the recommended section with this tile panel.