Anindita Nayak
Bhubaneswar, May 21
Microsoft has launched a new category of personal computer with AI features as the company eyes to compete with rivals like Alphabet and Apple.
At an event in Redmond, Washington, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella introduced “Copilot+” PCs. He announced that Microsoft and other manufacturers, like Acer and Asustek Computer, would be selling these new computers.
Post this launch, the technology giant’s shares touched record high, boosted by a Wall Street rally driven by expectations that AI will lead to significant profit growth for the company and its big tech competitors.
The new computers, starting at $1,000 and shipping on June 18, can handle more AI tasks without needing cloud data centers.
Copilot+ has a feature called “Recall” that tracks everything done on the computer, like web browsing and voice chats. This history is stored on the computer, allowing users to search and remember their activities, even months later.
The company also showed its Copilot voice assistant acting as a real-time virtual coach for a user playing the “Minecraft” video game.
Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft’s head of consumer marketing, said the company expects 50 million AI PCs to be sold in the next year. “Faster AI assistants that run directly on a PC will be the most compelling reason to upgrade your PC in a long time,” said Mehdi at the press event.
Global PC shipments fell by about 15% to 242 million last year, according to Gartner. This suggests Microsoft expects the new AI PCs to make up about one-fifth of all PCs sold.
Microsoft’s new “Copilot+” computers focus on AI features, echoing Intel’s strategy with “Ultrabook” laptops to compete against Apple’s MacBook Air. Additionally, Microsoft executives announced the integration of OpenAI’s GPT-4o technology into Copilot. The company also introduced updated versions of its Surface Pro tablet and Surface Laptop, now powered by Qualcomm chips utilizing Arm Holdings’ architecture. Furthermore, Microsoft unveiled Prism, enabling software compatibility between Intel/AMD chips and Arm-based chips.
Microsoft demonstrated its new devices against Apple’s, highlighting faster performance with Adobe photo editing software. Apple recently unveiled a new AI-focused chip expected to feature in upcoming laptops. While Intel’s processors dominated for years, companies like Qualcomm are now vying for market share with lower-power Arm components in the Windows PC market.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chips feature a dedicated neural processing unit that accelerates AI applications such as Microsoft’s Copilot software.
Microsoft unveiled its new products just ahead of its annual developer conference.
