Raycast first launched in 2020 and has become a popular app for owners of macOS desktops and notebooks. It"s basically a replacement for Apple"s Spotlight feature in macOS, offering fast access to apps, files, folders, and even access to ChatGPT.
Today, in a blog post, the UK-based Raycast announced it will launch a version of the app for Windows PCs sometime in 2025. The post stated:
Raycast"s powerful features and high quality have made it indispensable for professionals, from developers and designers to the founders of unicorn companies. It’s time that this productivity boost is unleashed to all Windows users as well. 2025 will be big!
The company has already set up a web page where interested Windows owners can sign up to join a waitlist for access to Raycast. Some people will be invited to check out a pre-release version of the app for Windows sometime later in 2024.
In addition, Raycast has revealed plans to launch an iOS version of the app. It also has a web page for a waitlist, and the first invites will be sent out later this year. In order to develop the app for Windows and iOS, Raycast announced it is raising $30 million in a Series B funding round.
Raycast"s co-founder and CEO, Thomas Paul Mann, was interviewed by The Verge about the expansion of its software to new platforms. He stated that the Windows version should work and even look like the current MacOS edition, adding "I think it’s pretty exciting to redefine what it would mean to use a Windows machine.”
However, Mann also said that making Raycast work for the iOS mobile operating system might be a bit different. He added that it could be created as more of a companion app rather than a launcher like the macOS and the upcoming Raycast version for Windows.