Microsoft appears to be experimenting with a different kind of New Tab page

Microsoft appears to be testing a very different kind of New Tab page in Edge Canary, and it may have less to do with visual changes and more to do with what’s happening behind the scenes.

X user Leopeva64 spotted a new experimental flag called “Enable OneJS-Based Edge NTP” in recent Canary builds.

After enabling the flag, opening a new tab redirects users to a Microsoft sign-in page, at least if you’re not already signed in. Once signed in, the traditional New Tab page is replaced with a cloud-based experience that includes a search box and a list of files pulled from OneDrive.

The layout looks simpler and more web-focused, with Microsoft 365 content taking center stage. In my own testing, the experience appears to be essentially the same as Microsoft’s existing Microsoft 365 search page at https://m365.cloud.microsoft/search, which further suggests this may be a web-based experience being surfaced inside Edge rather than a completely new New Tab page built from scratch.

Here’s a screenshot I captured after enabling the flag on Edge Canary v151.0.4096.0:

Since the experiment is currently hidden behind a flag, it means Microsoft isn’t rolling it out broadly and may still be evaluating the concept internally. 

The more interesting part may be the “OneJS” reference.

According to Leopeva64’s research, OneJS appears to be an internal Microsoft engineering system designed to unify JavaScript code across platforms. Instead of maintaining separate implementations for the web and the browser, Microsoft could use a shared codebase powered by the same underlying framework.

That would suggest this test isn’t necessarily about redesigning the New Tab page for everyone. Microsoft may be experimenting with a new technical foundation that allows the page to run as a cloud-based experience across different environments.

Early signs also point to this being aimed at business customers rather than regular consumers. The OneDrive integration and Microsoft 365-focused interface all hint at a potential enterprise or Entra-focused scenario, though Microsoft hasn’t publicly confirmed anything yet.

The company has been steadily experimenting with new Edge features in recent months. Microsoft recently started testing an AI-powered tool that can help users diagnose and fix browser issues directly within Edge, as we reported earlier. The feature uses AI to analyze problems and suggest potential fixes without requiring users to dig through settings manually.

Microsoft is also preparing a significant change to Edge’s development schedule. The company announced that Edge will move to a two-week release cycle beginning August 27, bringing the browser closer to the faster update cadence used by rivals such as Chrome.

For now, the OneJS-based New Tab page remains an experimental feature hidden inside Edge Canary, and there’s no indication that Microsoft plans to ship it to all users.

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