Microsoft Copilot will run locally on PC

Microsoft's Copilot AI service will soon run locally on PCs rather than through a cloud service. Microsoft has set a maximum Neural Processing Unit (NPU) performance requirement of at least 40 TOPS.

Tech Mar 28, 2024 0 167 Add to Reading List

Microsoft Copilot will run locally on PC

At the AI Summit in Taipei, Intel announced that Microsoft's Copilot AI service will soon go local to PCs. According to company representatives, in this case the performance of the neural processor (NPU) should be at least 40 TOPS.

It's worth noting that Copilot's computing is currently done in a cloud service, but moving to local processing will bring a number of benefits, including reduced latency, increased performance, and improved privacy.

It's important to note that Intel's Meteor Lake NPU model offers a maximum of 10 TOPS per NPU, while AMD's competing Ryzen Hawk Point model offers 16 TOPS. Both neural processors fall short of the 40 TOPS requirement. However, within a year, Qualcomm plans to release new X Elite chips with performance up to 45 TOPS.

Microsoft and Intel in their joint statement emphasize that the AI PC will be equipped with an NPU, a CPU, a GPU, Microsoft's Copilot, and a dedicated key to activate the AI assistant on the keyboard. There are already PCs on the market that meet most of the criteria, but these are just the first steps in a larger initiative to create a new prototype.

Microsoft's Copilot will run on all manufacturers' processors using DirectML to ensure availability. This heralds a battle for AI dominance in the coming years, both at the technology and marketing levels.