WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Microsoft, AMD, and Intel are all pushing the idea of AI PCs, but is it anything more than marketing speak? We find out

CONTRIBUTORS: Barry Collins, Tim Danton

Google’s Magic Eraser is AI on your phone, and it’s available right now.

REMEMBER WHEN 3D SCREENS were and if it’s a recent Apple, Google, or the next big thing? What about Samsung phone, then it includes virtual reality? Or 5G? The truth plenty of AI-enhanced features. is that the technology industry Magic Eraser is one obvious example. loves buzzwords almost as much as So let’s lay down a simple working it loves the tech itself, and its latest definition. An AI PC—for the duration crush is AI PCs. of these six pages, at least—is a laptop But if you ask five different or desktop PC that includes a processor vendors what an AI PC is, you’ll get with a neural processing unit (NPU). five different answers. AMD and Intel

That means an Intel Core Ultra, any will explain that it’s all about their AMD Ryzen processor with Ryzen AI new silicon, which now includes neural processing units. built in, and Apple MacBooks and Mac desktops with an M1, Nvidia will point to its hugely powerful RTX GPUs, while M2, or M3 series chip.

Microsoft will tout its mix of remote and local platforms. With that settled, what’s the point of an AI PC? What

By some definitions, you already have an AI PC to hand via can it actually do? What options are available? And, the the mobile phone in your pocket. It’s personal, it computes, fundamental question, should you buy one?

The Copilot key can be found on most AI PC laptops, including this Dell Latitude 9450.

WHAT CAN AN AI PC DO NOW?

IF YOU’RE IN the market for a new PC and are weighing up whether to invest in a so-called AI PC, you might reasonably wonder what advantages it will bring over an ‘ordinary’ PC.

We’ll come to the benefits afforded by the hardware that pretty much defines an AI PC—the neural processing unit or NPU—shortly, but there’s another distinguishing piece of hardware found on many AI PCs: the Copilot key.

This was billed as the first major change to PC keyboard layouts in almost 30 years, replacing the menu key to the right-hand side of the spacebar. It’s basically a shortcut for opening the Copilot assistant in Windows 11, sparing you the enormous effort of using the current Windows+C shortcut.

“We’re excited about having this key on our systems,” said Kevin Terwilliger, vice president and general manager of Dell’s Latitude and docking business, on a recent AI webinar.

While enthusiasm levels among

Maximum PC’s professional readership might be more muted, it’s worth remembering that 99 percent of users are familiar with only the most basic keyboard shortcuts, and that such initiatives—while seeming cosmetic and trivial—could make a difference.

“We really think of Copilot as the new search,” said Terwilliger. “And people are going to be interacting with Copilot throughout their day, engaging with it, asking questions, working with it to create content. And so we think the fact that having that key on the keyboard to jumpstart access into Copilot will be very valuable for the end user.”

Microsoft is driving Copilot integration deeper into the operating system, too. At the time of writing, Copilot’s ability to control the PC is limited. It can help you flick into dark mode, take a screenshot, and open File Explorer, but it’s superficial stuff.