Intel has big plans for the AI PC, spurred by the Meteor Lake laptop chips it introduced in late 2023. With an expansion of the AI PC Acceleration Program, developers should be able to provide AI software to more than 100 million Intel-based PCs by 2025.
By now, it’s finally become clear which computers may be called “AI PCs.” Microsoft has three requirements for a machine to be labelled as such. Firstly, the PC must be powered by a chip with an NPU, CPU and GPU, while it must also feature a Copilot button and its namesake AI assistant.
Developers can focus
It means developers should be able to focus their software knowing the hardware is fixed in some way, with the Neural Processing Unit typically being able to make the most efficient AI calculations. However, AI acceleration with the onboard GPU is faster, while the CPU responds fastest to user input for AI workloads. Exactly how this will operate in any program that offers AI functions remains to be seen.
In addition to the existing AI PC Acceleration Program, Intel is introducing the AI PC Developer Program. Here, the chipmaker is helping developers get new Dev Kits, which come with pre-installed frameworks and libraries that will run optimally on Intel Core Ultra chips. These include ASUS NUC 14 Pros, which have also been available to consumers.
Revamped developer resource pages should count as a “one-stop shop” for AI software development.
Preparing for AI revolution
Intel stresses the importance of early adoption of AI in the development process. Currently, relatively few systems have been sold that meet Microsoft’s requirements for an AI PC. It means developers still have time to ensure compatibility in advance for new users later this year. The PC market is meant to rebound after a disastrous 2023, with AI acceleration as a major selling point. It’s of course not sure if such a bounceback will actually be happening – or if it will be powered by AI excitement, at any rate.
Also read: Will AI save the PC market from a third consecutive year of disaster?
It should be added that AI hardware adoption is still very limited. Only Intel Core Ultra laptops and a few AMD Ryzen chips offer an NPU, while no new chip architectures have yet been introduced on desktops that incorporate AI hardware. Once wider availability exists, it should become clear whether Intel’s AI PC Acceleration Program has been successful.
21 hours ago
