There have been several exciting developments in
notebook technology over recent weeks. It’s hoped that new AI–capable
chipsets and a new category, Copilot+ PCs, will help to reinvigorate
the market.
Change is certainly coming. On the week of June
10, AI–ready notebooks comprised 16% of notebook sales through
European distribution, according to CONTEXT figures. These included
the first Copilot+ notebooks based on Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X chip
– a chip that comes with a 45 TOPS built–in neural processing unit (NPU).
Getting AI ready
A number of recent announcements has got market
watchers excited about the potential for AI to spur new demand. These include:
The Copilot+ PC design aims to bring some AI
workloads and applications to the device by integrating
high–performance neural processing units (NPUs). This will free–up
other components and increase device speed and battery power.
However, this new PC category requires a 40+ TOPS
NPU chip. Snapdragon X is the first and currently only one on the
market. Intel and AMD have announced their own versions, but these are
not expected to be out before Q3.
Time to change
CONTEXT believes Copilot+ PCs and other
AI–powered notebooks will eventually help to kickstart improved
market performance, but not immediately. In the meantime, as with
any major new technology, the industry is still debating definitions
and trying to decide what an AI PC is, or should be. And it’s still
working out what the best use cases are for the tech, and how to
market these.
It’s not even clear whether TOPS NPU is the best
way to measure AI performance. Total system performance also depends
on other components such as the GPU, the software and the specific AI
application that is being run. But we’re still in the early days of a
nascent sector. There’s plenty to be excited about. But some caution
is also required at this stage.
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