Microsoft is going to be able to spy on your private and business life a whole lot easier than they have in the past, following their rollout of new AI powered notebooks and a new Copilot Plus that is built into a new generation of Arm-based Snapdragon X Elite and Plus processors from Qualcomm the technology that tracks everything you write and where you go will also be available for PC’s running Intel and AMD processors.
Michael Dell the CEO of Dell who is also is unveiling a new line of personal computers optimised for artificial intelligence tasks, claims that AI and the power of AI will be pretty standard in PCs by the end of this year.
He and other major manufacturers including Lenovo HP, Acer and the likes of ASUS are punting on AI to drive a surge in sales this year.
“We’re going to be delivering them in volume” this year, Dell said in an interview. By next year, “it’ll be pretty standard.”
AI PCs that Microsoft are now spruiking contain neural processing units, a kind of chip that is meant to speed up artificial intelligence work like running a chatbot, they will be able to capture more data than ever before.
Dell executives said the PCs also include a dedicated key to turn on AI Copilot service, which uses generative AI technology, that responds to written or verbal prompts from users, to automate business tasks such as summarising documents and writing memos.
This is data that Microsoft will have access to especially with their new lineup of Surface notebooks.
A key AI feature available within Copilot Plus PCs is Recall.
This tool runs locally on your device and logs everything you do on your computer, allowing you to search for and retrieve the content you’ve interacted with.
That makes it possible to track a conversation you’ve had in apps like Outlook, or even a specific PowerPoint slide you were working on.
At the Microsoft Build 2024, event in Seattle overnight the software Companies new AI offering was shown working on a multitude of PCs from most of the leading brands.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed how Microsoft is “bringing the AI wave to PCs,” and that involves a new category of computers that run Arm-based Snapdragon X Elite and Plus processors from Qualcomm.
These processors have neural processing units (NPUs) designed to power new AI features in Windows 11.
As a result, Microsoft says Copilot Plus PCs are 58 percent faster than the M3 MacBook Air.
In addition to Microsoft’s new Surface devices, Lenovo, Dell, Acer, Asus, and HP are launching Copilot Plus.
For their new Microsoft Surface Pro, the Company has dumped the last-gen’s Intel Core Ultra processor for Snapdragon X Elite and Plus chips from Qualcomm.
They claim it’s up to 90 percent faster than the previous Surface Pro, and it comes with the option for an OLED display panel for the first time.
The 13-inch Surface Pro starts at $1,899 and is available in four colours, including blue, beige, black, and platinum.
It’s compatible with a new Surface Pro Flex Keyboard that works when attached or detached from the device.
Microsoft also announced the new Surface Laptop, which offers the AI-ready Snapdragon X Elite and Plus chips.
The device features a refreshed design with thinner bezels and a haptic touchpad. Microsoft says the device is more than 80 percent faster than its previous generation and offers up to 22 hours of local video playback.
Microsoft is also partnering with companies such as Adobe to optimise their apps for Copilot Plus PCs.
The native Arm64 versions of Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, Firefly, and Express will be available on Copilot Plus PCs today, while Illustrator and Premiere Pro will be available in the second half in Australia.
The downside is that a great deal of software designed for Intel powered PC’s will not be available until third party software Companies rewrite their code for Windows PC’s running the Qualcomm processors.
