Microsoft said that support for local language and graphical generative models is not a reason to call the device an “AI computer.” The company has compiled a list of its own criteria for such PCs, which, however, was not too voluminous.
In total, Microsoft has identified three criteria for an “artificial intelligence computer.” First of all, this is the presence of a separate neural processing unit (NPU) in addition to the central and graphics processors. The second criterion is support for the Copilot AI assistant out of the box, and the third is the presence of a dedicated button to launch it.
“…As we move to the next generation, it [the presence of an NPU] will simply allow us to run more functions locally – that is, more and more Copilot functions can be run on the user’s computer. This does not mean that everything in Copilot works without the Internet, but you will get many key capabilities with an NPU,” Microsoft explained.
According to Tom’s Hardware, the NPU performance of a “real” AI computer should be at least 40 TOPS (trillion operations per second). It is possible that with the help of such “system requirements” Microsoft is laying the foundation for a new version of Windows OS with a wide range of AI functions.
