Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. today expands the leading Snapdragon X Series platform portfolio with Snapdragon X Plus. Snapdragon X Plus features the state-of-the-art Qualcomm Oryon CPU, a custom-integrated processor that delivers up to 37% faster CPU performance compared to competitors, while consuming up to 54% less power. This remarkable advancement in CPU performance sets a new standard in mobile computing, enabling users to accomplish more with greater efficiency. Snapdragon X Plus is also designed to meet the demands of on-device AI-driven applications, powered by the Qualcomm Hexagon NPU capable of 45 TOPS, making it the world's fastest NPU for laptops. This platform is a significant leap in computing innovation and is set to transform the PC industry.

"Snapdragon X Series platforms deliver leading experiences and are positioned to revolutionize the PC industry. Snapdragon X Plus will power AI-Supercharged PCs that enable even more users to excel as radical new AI experiences emerge in this period of rapid development and deployment," said Kedar Kondap, senior vice president and general manager of compute and gaming, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. "By delivering leading CPU performance, AI capabilities, and power efficiency, we are once again pushing the boundaries of what is possible in mobile computing."

Lenovo is putting finishing touches on the Yoga Slim 7 14 2024, one of the first non-reference laptop to feature Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X processor. Leaked images circulating on X (formerly Twitter) reveal a sleek and stylish design, with a 14-inch or 14.5-inch display encased in a slim and portable form factor. Qualcomm has previously showcased eye-catching demo reference systems in a striking red color scheme, but Lenovo's Yoga Slim 7 14 2024 marks the first time a significant laptop manufacturer with actual product images incorporating the Snapdragon X chip. The Yoga Slim 7 14 2024 is part of Lenovo's popular Slim laptop lineup, including models powered by Intel and AMD processors. The latest "Gen 8" iteration featured options for AMD Ryzen 7040 series and Intel 13th Gen Core i and Core Ultra series CPUs.

One notable addition to the Snapdragon X-powered model is the inclusion of a dedicated Microsoft Copilot button. Qualcomm has heavily touted the Snapdragon X's Neural Processing Unit (NPU) performance and its ability to directly accelerate various AI and machine learning algorithms on the device. There have been a few comparison points between Meteor Lake with Intel's NPU and Snapdragon X Elite with Qualcomm's NPU. The chipmaker's X Elite and X Plus laptop offerings are expected to arrive soon, and there are strong indications that this may happen during the Computex trade show.Update 17:28 UTC: X user WalkingCat has posted images of Lenovo Thinkpad T14s laptop, which can be seen below.

Intel at its VISION conference, confirmed that its next-generation processor for the ultraportable and thin-and-light segments, the Core Ultra "Lunar Lake," will feature an over four-fold increase in NPU performance, which will be as fast as 45 TOPS. This is a significant figure, as Microsoft recently announcedthat Copilot will perform several tasks locally (on the device), provided it has an NPU capable of at least 40 TOPS. The current AI Boost NPU found in Core Ultra "Meteor Lake" processor is no faster than 10 TOPS, and the current AMD Ryzen 8040 series features a Ryzen AI NPU with 16 TOPS on tap. AMD's upcoming Ryzen "Strix Point" processor is rumored to feature a similar 40 TOPS-class NPU performance as "Lunar Lake."

Intel also confirmed that notebooks powered by Core Ultra "Lunar Lake" processors will hit the shelves by Christmas 2024 (December). These notebooks will feature not just the 45 TOPS NPU, but also debut Intel's Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" graphics architecture as the processor's integrated graphics solution. With Microsoft's serious push for standardizing AI assistants, the new crop of notebooks could also feature Copilot as a fixed-function button on their keyboards, similar to the Win key that brings up the Start menu.

While we are all used to having a system with a CPU, GPU, and, recently, NPU—X-Silicon Inc. (XSi), a startup founded by former Silicon Valley veterans—has unveiled an interesting RISC-V processor that can simultaneously handle CPU, GPU, and NPU workloads in a chip. This innovative chip architecture, which will be open-source, aims to provide a flexible and efficient solution for a wide range of applications, including artificial intelligence, virtual reality, automotive systems, and IoT devices. The new microprocessor combines a RISC-V CPU core with vector capabilities and GPU acceleration into a single chip, creating a versatile all-in-one processor. By integrating the functionality of a CPU and GPU into a single core, X-Silicon's design offers several advantages over traditional architectures. The chip utilizes the open-source RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA) for both CPU and GPU operations, running a single instruction stream. This approach promises lower memory footprint execution and improved efficiency, as there is no need to copy data between separate CPU and GPU memory spaces.

Called the C-GPU architecture, X-Silicon uses RISC-V Vector Core, which has 16 32-bit FPUs and a Scaler ALU for processing regular integers as well as floating point instructions. A unified instruction decoder feeds the cores, which are connected to a thread scheduler, texture unit, rasterizer, clipping engine, neural engine, and pixel processors. All is fed into a frame buffer, which feeds the video engine for video output. The setup of the cores allows the users to program each core individually for HPC, AI, video, or graphics workloads. Without software, there is no usable chip, which prompts X-Silicon to work on OpenGL ES, Vulkan, Mesa, and OpenCL APIs. Additionally, the company plans to release a hardware abstraction layer (HAL) for direct chip programming. According to Jon Peddie Research (JPR), the industry has been seeking an open-standard GPU that is flexible and scalable enough to support various markets. X-Silicon's CPU/GPU hybrid chip aims to address this need by providing manufacturers with a single, open-chip design that can handle any desired workload. The XSi gave no timeline, but it has plans to distribute the IP to OEMs and hyperscalers, so the first silicon is still away.

AMD has introduced the Ryzen Embedded 8000 Series processors, the first AMD embedded devices to combine NPUs based on the AMD XDNA architecture with traditional CPU and GPU elements, optimized for workload versatility and adaptability targeting industrial AI applications. Embedded solution engineers and developers can harness the processing power and leadership features for a variety of industrial AI applications including machine vision, robotics, and industrial automation. AI is widely used in machine vision applications today to enhance quality control and inspection processes.

AI can also help robots make real-time, route-planning decisions and adapt to dynamic environments. In industrial automation, AI processing helps intelligent edge devices perform complex analysis and decision-making without relying on cloud connectivity. This allows for real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and autonomous control of industrial processes, enhancing operational efficiency and reducing downtime.

Arm China is making strides in the AI accelerator market with its new neural processing unit (NPU) called Zhouyi. The company aims to integrate the NPU into low-cost domestic CPUs, potentially giving it an edge over competitors like AMD and Intel. Initially a part of Arm Holdings, which licensed IP in China, Arm China took on a new strategy of developing its own IP specifically for Chinese customers a few years ago. While the company does not develop high-performance general-purpose cores, its Zhouyi NPU could become a fundamental building block for affordable processors. A significant step forward is the upcoming addition of an open-source driver for Zhouyi to the Linux kernel. This will make the IP easy to program for software developers, increasing its appeal to chip designers.

Being an open-source driver, the integration in the Linux kernel brings assurance to developers that Zhouyi NPU could be the first in many generations from Arm China. While Zhouyi may not directly compete with offerings from AMD or Intel, its potential for widespread adoption in millions of devices could help Arm China acquire local customers with their IP. The project, which began three years ago with a kernel-only driver, has since evolved into a full driver stack. There is even a development kit board called EAIDK310, powered by Rockwell SoC and Zhouyi NPU, which is available on Aliexpress and Amazon. The integration of AI accelerator technology into the Linux ecosystem is a significant development, though there is still work to be done. Nonetheless, Arm China's Zhouyi NPU and open-source driver are essential to making AI capabilities more accessible and widely available in the domestic Chinese market.

ZOTAC TECHNOLOGY, a global company focused on innovation, announces three brand-new series of compact form-factor mini AI PCs powered by cutting-edge processors. These mini AI PCs, powered by Intel and AMD processors with dedicated Neural Processing Units (NPU), let users embrace the next generation of computing empowered by Artificial Intelligence.

Accelerated with embedded NPUs within Intel Core Ultra and AMD Ryzen Processors, the brand-new AI PC ZBOX lineup brings the power of Artificial Intelligence to the desk, allowing users to jumpstart their productivity or creativity with AI-powered acceleration. ZBOX's signature lightweight form factor chassis coupled with next-gen hardware create a new generation of versatile, capable personal computers that are smarter to use and even easier to set up.

Microsoft, Intel, and AMD are attempting to jumpstart demand in the PC industry again, under the aegis of the AI PC—devices with native acceleration for AI workloads. Both Intel and AMD have mobile processors with on-silicon NPUs (neural processing units), which are designed to accelerate the first wave of AI-enhanced client experiences on Windows 11 23H2. Microsoft's bulwark with democratizing AI has been Copilot, as a licensee of Open AI GPT-4, GPT-4 Turbo, Dali, and other generative AI tools from the Open AI stable. Copilot is currently Microsoft's most heavily invested application, with its most capital and best minds mobilized to making it the most popular AI assistant. Microsoft even pushed for the AI PC designator to PC OEMs, which requires them to have a dedicated Copilot key akin to the Start key (we'll see how anti-competition regulators deal with that).

The problem with Microsoft's tango with Intel and AMD to push AI PCs, is that Copilot doesn't really use an NPU, not even at the edge—you input a query or a prompt, and Copilot hands it over to a cloud-based AI service. This is about to change, with Microsoft announcing that Copilot will be able to run locally on AI PCs. Microsoft identified several kinds of Copilot use-cases that an NPU can handle on-device, which should speed up response times to Copilot queries, but this requires the NPU to have at least 40 TOPS of performance. This is a problem for the current crop of processors with NPUs. Intel's Core Ultra "Meteor Lake" has an AI Boost NPU with 10 TOPS on tap, while the Ryzen 8040 "Hawk Point" is only slightly faster, with a 16 TOPS Ryzen AI NPU. AMD has already revealed that the XDNA 2-based 2nd Generation Ryzen AI NPU in its upcoming "Strix Point" processors will come with over 40 TOPS of performance, and it stands to reason that the NPUs in Intel's "Arrow Lake" or "Lunar Lake" processors are comparable in performance; which should enable on-device Copilot.

We are excited to announce the first Surface AI PCs built exclusively for business: Surface Pro 10 for Business and Surface Laptop 6 for Business. These new PCs represent a major step forward in customer-focused design and are packed with features that business customers have been requesting - from amazing performance and battery life to more ports, better security and custom, durable anti-reflective displays. These are the first Surface PCs optimized for AI, with the new Copilot key being added to Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro keyboards that accelerate access to the best Windows AI experiences. In addition to the new Surface for Business products, we are pleased to announce the Microsoft Adaptive Accessories will now be available to commercial customers.

These new PCs are powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra processors. We partnered with Intel to deliver the power and reliable performance our customers depend on, along with compelling AI experiences for Surface and the Windows ecosystem. Surface has also been leading in Neural Processing Unit (NPU) integration to drive AI experiences on the PC since 2019, and the benefits of these connected efforts are evident. From a performance perspective, Surface Laptop 6 is 2x faster than Laptop 52, and Surface Pro 10 is up to 53% faster than Pro 9. The benefits of the NPU integration include AI features like Windows Studio Effects and Live Captions and the opportunity for businesses and developers to build their own AI apps and experiences.

Canalys' latest forecast predicts that an estimated 48 million AI-capable PCs will ship worldwide in 2024, representing 18% of total PC shipments. But this is just the start of a major market transition, with AI-capable PC shipments projected to surpass 100 million in 2025, 40% of all PC shipments. In 2028, Canalys expects vendors to ship 205 million AI-capable PCs, representing a staggering compound annual growth rate of 44% between 2024 and 2028.

These PCs, integrating dedicated AI accelerators, such as Neural Processing Units (NPUs), will unlock new capabilities for productivity, personalization and power efficiency, disrupting the PC market and delivering significant value gains to vendors and their partners.

QNAP Systems, Inc., a leading computing, networking, and storage solution innovator, today launched the TS-216G NAS, a high-performing and substantial 2-bay NAS designed for individuals, families, and workgroups. The ARM quad-core processor with a 2.5GbE port, 4 GB RAM, and NPU (Neural network Processing Unit) takes 2-bay NAS performance to the next level. Not only can it streamline backup from multiple devices and improve overall data security, but also creates a comprehensive file management center for home or work users - making the TS-216G one of the most cost-effective and high-efficiency 2-bay NAS on the market.

The built-in NPU, designed for AI applications, can remarkably accelerate image recognition for the AI-powered QuMagie smart photo management, especially when users import hundreds or thousands of photos at a time. It also reduces CPU workloads, resulting in higher computing performance and lower power consumption for the TS-216G.

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. unveiled its latest advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) at Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona. From the new Qualcomm AI Hub, to cutting-edge research breakthroughs and a display of commercial AI-enabled devices, Qualcomm Technologies is empowering developers and revolutionizing user experiences across a wide range of devices powered by Snapdragon and Qualcomm platforms.

"With Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for smartphones and Snapdragon X Elite for PCs, we sparked commercialization of on-device AI at scale. Now with the Qualcomm AI Hub, we will empower developers to fully harness the potential of these cutting-edge technologies and create captivating AI-enabled apps," said Durga Malladi, senior vice president and general manager, technology planning and edge solutions, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. "The Qualcomm AI Hub provides developers with a comprehensive AI model library to quickly and easily integrate pre-optimized AI models into their applications, leading to faster, more reliable and private user experiences."

Samsung Electronics is making 2024 the year of the AI PC with the release of its most powerful and intelligent Galaxy Book product line yet, the Galaxy Book4 series. This latest lineup—consisting of the Galaxy Book4 Ultra, Galaxy Book4 Pro and Galaxy Book4 Pro 360—offers intelligent performance, enhanced security and a vivid, interactive display, all in an ultra-portable design. From the new Intel Core Ultra Processor to the suite of AI features, the Galaxy Book4 series is packed with cutting-edge technology that aims to not only simplify but amplify users' computing experience.

Visitors discovered the Galaxy Book4 series' full capabilities inside Samsung's booth at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2024, the world's largest mobile exhibition held from February 26-29 in Barcelona, Spain. Samsung Newsroom sat down with Mincheol Lee, Head of Galaxy Eco Biz Team, Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics, and David Feng, Vice President of Client Computing Group and General Manager of Client Segments at Intel, to explore how the advancements in the Galaxy Book4 series can enrich the lives of users.

With generative AI and hybrid work environments becoming the new standard, nearly every professional, whether a content creator, researcher or engineer, needs a powerful, AI-accelerated laptop to help users tackle their industry's toughest challenges - even on the go. The new NVIDIA RTX 500 and 1000 Ada Generation Laptop GPUs will be available in new, highly portable mobile workstations, expanding the NVIDIA Ada Lovelace architecture-based lineup, which includes the RTX 2000, 3000, 3500, 4000 and 5000 Ada Generation Laptop GPUs.

AI is rapidly being adopted to drive efficiencies across professional design and content creation workflows and everyday productivity applications, underscoring the importance of having powerful local AI acceleration and sufficient processing power in systems. The next generation of mobile workstations with Ada Generation GPUs, including the RTX 500 and 1000 GPUs, will include both a neural processing unit (NPU), a component of the CPU, and an NVIDIA RTX GPU, which includes Tensor Cores for AI processing. The NPU helps offload light AI tasks, while the GPU provides up to an additional 682 TOPS of AI performance for more demanding day-to-day AI workflows.

LG Electronics USA (LG) today announced pricing and availability of its 2024 premium lineup of laptops - the LG gram Pro and LG gram Pro 2-in-1. The 16- and 17-inch LG gram Pro models retail for $2399 (16Z90SP-A.ADB9U1) and $2499 (17Z90SP-E.ADB9U1) respectively while the CES 2024 Innovation Award-winning 16-inch gram Pro 2-in-1 (16T90SP-K.ADB9U1) retails for $2099. For a limited time, customers shopping on LG.com can pre-order the 16- and 17-inch LG gram Pro and 16-inch LG gram Pro 2-in-1.

Throughout the duration of the pre-order period from February 21, 2024, to March 10, 2024, customers will be able to purchase the 32 GB-RAM/2 TB-SSD LG gram Pro laptop for the price of a 16 GB-RAM/1 TB-SSD model of the same screen size. They'll also receive an LG gram +view IPS portable monitor (16MR70.ASDU) and expedited shipping at no additional cost. All standard terms of purchase apply.

Global technology brand HONOR today unveiled the HONOR MagicBook Pro 16, a revolutionary AI-powered laptop which sets to redefine the traditional laptop landscape. Based on HONOR's platform-level AI capabilities and joint efforts with technology partners such as Microsoft, Intel and NVIDIA, HONOR is bringing PCs into the AI PC era, marking a significant milestone in computing, offering users an unparalleled AI experience and transforming their device interactions.

"At HONOR, our commitment lies in embracing open collaboration with industry partners to foster a flourishing ecosystem. We firmly believe in the transformative power of collaborative synergy, especially in the era of AI. By leveraging the collective expertise of top industry players, we are dedicated to crafting exceptional products and delivering unparalleled experiences to consumers worldwide," said George Zhao, CEO at HONOR.

A new forecast from International Data Corporation (IDC) shows shipments of artificial intelligence (AI) PCs - personal computers with specific system-on-a-chip (SoC) capabilities designed to run generative AI tasks locally - growing from nearly 50 million units in 2024 to more than 167 million in 2027. By the end of the forecast, IDC expects AI PCs will represent nearly 60% of all PC shipments worldwide.

"As we enter a new year, the hype around generative AI has reached a fever pitch, and the PC industry is running fast to capitalize on the expected benefits of bringing AI capabilities down from the cloud to the client," said Tom Mainelli, group vice president, Devices and Consumer Research. "Promises around enhanced user productivity via faster performance, plus lower inferencing costs, and the benefit of on-device privacy and security, have driven strong IT decision-maker interest in AI PCs. In 2024, we'll see AI PC shipments begin to ramp, and over the next few years, we expect the technology to move from niche to a majority."

Recently, MINISFORUM updated the CPU of V3 to AMD's latest Ryzen7 8840U on its official website. Previously, the preview page for V3 went live on January 3rd. It is understood that MINISFORUM is expected to hold the V3 and Spring New Product Launch Event at the end of March 2024. MINISFORUM V3 is the world's first high-performance AMD AI 3-in-1 tablet, featuring AMD's latest Ryzen7 8840U, built on a 4 nm process, with Zen 4 CPU and RDNA3 GPU architecture, 8 cores 16 threads, a base frequency of 3.30 GHz, and a maximum boost frequency of 5.10 GHz, with a TDP of 15-30 W, and a 16 MB L3 cache. It integrates Radeon 780M graphics. V3 also boasts a dual-fan and four-copper-pipe cooling system, achieving 28 W sustained performance release, providing sustained power for AI model training, graphic rendering, video editing, and gaming entertainment.

The AMD 8840U is also paired with a proprietary XDNA AI processor, with NPU computing power up to 16TOPS and processor computing power up to 38TOPS. Based on this, V3 is equipped with a new AMD Ryzen AI, creating an AI Windows triple-in-one tablet PC with the highest security level from Microsoft, supporting Microsoft Real-time Communication, and hardware design supporting Microsoft Copilot, which can be called upon with a single click, providing real-time intelligent suggestions and assistance, helping users easily complete tasks in various scenarios for efficient office work.

We already know about AMD Ryzen 7 8700G APU's enjoyment of overclocked memory—early reviews demonstrated the graphical benefits granted by fiddling with "iGPU engine clock and the processor's memory frequency." While gamers can enjoy a boosted integrated graphics solution that is comparable in performance 1080p stakes to a discrete Radeon RX 6500 XT GPU, AI enthusiasts are eager to experiment with the "Hawk Point" pat's Radeon 780M IGP and Neural Processing Unit (NPU)—the first generation Ryzen XDNA inference engine can unleash up to 16 AI TOPs. One individual, chi11eddog, posted their findings through social media channels earlier today, coinciding with the official launch of Ryzen 8000G processors. The initial set of results concentrated on the Radeon 780M aspect; NPU-centric data may arrive at a later date.

They performed quick tests on AMD's freshly released Ryzen 7 8700G desktop processor, combined with an MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi motherboard and two sticks of 16 GB DDR5-4800 memory. The MSI exclusive "Memory Try It" feature was deployed further up in the tables—this assisted in achieving and gauging several "higher system RAM frequency" settings. Here is chi11eddog's succinct interpretation of benchmark results: "7600 MT/s is 15% faster than 4800 MT/s in UL Procyon AI Inference Benchmark and 4% faster in GIMP with Stable Diffusion." The processor's default memory state is capable of producing 210 Float32 TOPs, according to chi11eddog's inference chart. The 6000 MT/s setting produces a 7% improvement over baseline, while 7200 MT/s drives proceedings to 11%—the flagship APU's Radeon 780M iGPU appears to be quite dependent on bandwidth. Their GIMP w/ Stable Diffusion benchmarks also taxed the integrated RDNA 3 graphics solution—again, it was deemed to be fairly bandwidth hungry.

The Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26040 was made available via the Canary Channel last Friday—Microsoft's introductory blog explores a wide range of improvements and fixes—including a new Task Manager icon, support for USB 80 Gbps (AKA USB 4 Version 2), Colemak and Hebrew keyboard layouts and many more. The most significant change arrives with a wider deployment of Voice Clarity—this change has received plenty of press attention over the past weekend. The AI-powered feature was first released publicly back in 2022, but its rollout was product limited to compatible Surface devices. Microsoft's January 26 Insider Blog entry has an extensive escape plan—support is extending to "x64 and Arm64 CPUs" without any need for "extra hardware."

The relevant section stated: "We are expanding Voice Clarity which has been available on Surface devices and making it available to more people. Voice Clarity is a feature that enhances your audio experience on Windows with state-of-the-art AI technology. Powered by low complexity AI models, Voice Clarity cancels echo, suppresses background noise, and reduces reverberation in real-time. This feature is enabled by default and can be utilized by applications using Communications Signal Processing Mode, such as Phone Link and WhatsApp." Previously, this feature was only available on Surface devices that sported a Neural Processing Unit (NPU), so it is interesting to see Voice Clarity becoming less reliant on AI-tailored hardware.

Intel Corporation today reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 financial results. "We delivered strong Q4 results, surpassing expectations for the fourth consecutive quarter with revenue at the higher end of our guidance," said Pat Gelsinger, Intel CEO. "The quarter capped a year of tremendous progress on Intel's transformation, where we consistently drove execution and accelerated innovation, resulting in strong customer momentum for our products. In 2024, we remain relentlessly focused on achieving process and product leadership, continuing to build our external foundry business and at-scale global manufacturing, and executing our mission to bring AI everywhere as we drive long-term value for stakeholders."

David Zinsner, Intel CFO, said, "We continued to drive operational efficiencies in the fourth quarter, and comfortably achieved our commitment to deliver $3 billion in cost savings in 2023. We expect to unlock further efficiencies in 2024 and beyond as we implement our new internal foundry model, which is designed to drive greater transparency and accountability and higher returns on our owners' capital." For the full year, the company generated $11.5 billion in cash from operations and paid dividends of $3.1 billion.

Samsung Electronics today unveiled the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy S24+ and Galaxy S24, unleashing new mobile experiences with Galaxy AI. Galaxy S series leads the way into a new era that will forever change how mobile devices empower users. AI amplifies nearly every experience on Galaxy S24 series, from enabling barrier-free communication with intelligent text and call translations, to maximizing creative freedom with Galaxy's ProVisual Engine, to setting a new standard for search that will change how Galaxy users discover the world around them.

"The Galaxy S24 series transforms our connection with the world and ignites the next decade of mobile innovation," said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile eXperience (MX) Business at Samsung Electronics. "Galaxy AI is built on our innovation heritage and deep understanding of how people use their phones. We're excited to see how our users around the world empower their everyday lives with Galaxy AI to open up new possibilities."

Microsoft has reportedly set 16 GB as the minimum system requirement for AI PCs, a TrendForce market research report finds. To say that Microsoft has a pivotal role to play in PC hardware specs is an understatement. This year sees the introduction of the first "AI PCs," or PCs with on-device AI acceleration for several new features native to Windows 11 23H2, mainly Microsoft Copilot. From the looks of it, Copilot is receiving the highest corporate attention from Microsoft, as the company looks to integrate the AI chatbot that automates and generates work, into the mainstream PC. In fact, Microsoft is even pushing for a dedicated Copilot button on PC keyboards along the lines of the key that brings up the Start menu. The company's biggest move with Copilot will be the 2024 introduction of Copilot Pro, an AI assistant integrated with Office and 365, which the company plans to sell on a subscription basis alone.

Besides cloud-based acceleration, Microsoft's various AI features will rely on some basic hardware specs for local acceleration. One of them of course is the NPU, with Intel's AI Boost and AMD's Ryzen AI being introduced with their latest mobile processors. The other requirement will be memory. AI acceleration is a highly memory sensitive operation, and LLMs require a sizable amount of fast frequent-access memory. So Microsoft arrived at 16 GB as the bare minimum amount of memory for not just native acceleration, but also cloud-based Copilot AI features to work. This should see the notebooks of 2024 set 16 GB as their baseline memory specs; and for commercial notebooks to scale up to 32 GB or even 64 GB, depending on organizational requirements. The development bodes particularly well for the DRAM industry.

Samsung Electronics showcased its AI-strengthened Galaxy ecosystem at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024 in Las Vegas from January 9-12. The dedicated Mobile Experience Zone at Samsung's booth pulled attendees in for one last glimpse at the company's top innovations where visitors could experience the latest Galaxy products, including the Galaxy Book4 Series, and view how they are strengthened by partnerships with industry leaders. Samsung Newsroom visited the site and summarized the main highlights of the event. Read on to learn how the company is driving the hyper-connected mobile experience of the future.

New, Exciting AI Capabilities With the Galaxy Book4 Series
The new Galaxy Book4 Series was spotlighted near the entrance of the zone. Attendees could experience the strong AI performance and the incredibly responsive touchscreen display of the Galaxy Book4, released on January 4 in Korea. The Galaxy Book4 series is equipped with the new Intel Core Ultra Processor, offering expanded connectivity and a high-performance AI experience. The zone featured up-close demonstrations of the laptop's increased processing power, made possible by a newly-added Neural Processing Unit (NPU).

Intel in its 2024 International CES presentation, unveiled its two new upcoming client microarchitectures, "Arrow Lake" and "Lunar Lake." Michelle Johnston Holthaus, EVP and GM of Intel's client computing group (CCG), in her keynote address, held up a next-generation Core Ultra "Lunar Lake" chip. This is the Lunar Lake-MX package, with MOP (memory on package). You have a Foveros base tile resembling "Meteor Lake," with on-package LPDDR5x memory stacks. With "Lunar Lake," Intel is reorganizing components across its various Foveros tiles—the Compute and Graphics tiles are combined into a single tile built on an Intel foundry node that's possibly the Intel 20A (we have no confirmation); and a smaller SoC tile that has all of the components of the current "Meteor Lake" SoC tile, and is possibly built on a TSMC node, such as N3.

"Lunar Lake" will pick up the mantle from "Meteor Lake" in the U-segment and H-segment (that's ultraportables, and thin-and-light), when it comes out later this year (we predict in the second half of 2024), with Core Ultra 2-series branding. Intel also referenced "Arrow Lake," which could finally bring light to the sluggish pace of development in its desktop segment. When it comes out later this year, "Arrow Lake" will debut Socket LGA1851, "Arrow Lake" will bring the AI Boost NPU to the desktop, along with Arc Xe-LPG integrated graphics. The biggest upgrade of course will be its new Compute tile, with its "Lion Cove" P-cores, and "Skymont" E-cores, that possibly offer a large IPC uplift over the current combination of "Raptor Cove" and "Gracemont" cores on the "Raptor Lake" silicon. It's also possible that Intel will try to bring "Meteor Lake" with its 6P+8E Compute tile, Xe-LPG iGPU, and NPU, to the LGA1851 socket, as part of some mid-range processor models. 2024 will see a Intel desktop processor based on a new architecture, which is the big takeaway here.