Around 241.8 million units of personal computers were sold all across the world in 2023. Despite this, it was the worst year on record for PC sales, with a nearly 15% decline compared to the previous year, according to Gartner.
In India too, last year, the PC market declined by 6.6%. Low market sentiments post-pandemic, supply chain constraints and geopolitical tensions contributed to the decline; but now PC makers are hoping generative AI could help alter their fate.
The top PC makers in the world have been quick to ship AI-powered PCs in most markets. Acer, which has a relatively small portion of the PC sales market, witnessed a 12.3% increase in sales in 2023, the highest among all.
Acer too has already launched a series of AI PCs that are also available in the Indian market which comes with built-in AI features.
New AI PCs Coming Soon to Indian Market
In an interview with AIM, Sudhir Goel, chief business officer at Acer India said, “At Computex 2024, we have showcased a lot of new products, which we are thrilled to introduce to the Indian market in the coming year.”
So far, Acer has launched the Acer Swift 14 AI PCs, the TravelMate series, and its Predator Helios AI gaming laptops in India.
“With Swift AI, all functionalities, ranging from image enhancement to voice processing, are performed locally, thanks to the neural processing unit integrated within our laptops. This ensures an elevated level of privacy and security, paramount for individual and corporate users,” Goel said.
The TravelMate business PCs are equipped with sophisticated enterprise-grade AI security, and they will soon be available in India. These laptops feature advanced AI tools, including Acer LiveArt and the GIMP with Intel’s Stable Diffusion plugin.
It also leverages NPU for AI-accelerated applications to blur the background, automatically frame, and maintain eye contact during video conferencing. Moreover, AI will optimise power consumption during long conferencing calls.
“In the gaming sector, AI integration will redefine immersive gaming by enabling real-time map generation and dynamic creation of in-game elements based on live data. Additionally, we will introduce advanced AI-driven monitors to elevate the overall user experience,” Goel revealed.
The Predator Helios 16 laptops are already available in the Indian market. However, the true advantage of AI emerges when an AI model can be run locally on the device. Given the gargantuan sizes of these Large Language Models (LLMs), they can only run on the cloud.
“With Acer’s cutting-edge Neural Processing Units (NPU), our laptops can handle LLM tasks directly on the device. As we look to the future, we envision local LLM capabilities becoming a significant differentiator in the market,” Goel revealed.
Acer Laptops Will have New AI Processors
The Acer Swift AI PCs come with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Elite processors. However, Acer plans to offer a range of new processors in its upcoming laptops.
“While Snapdragon’s latest technology offers remarkable capabilities, we are also exploring options from Intel and AMD. Our strategy is to evaluate and incorporate processors from all these leading providers based on their strengths and innovations. This approach ensures that our laptops can cater to a wide range of needs, from exceptional performance and efficiency to specialised AI features,” Goel said.
The TravelMate P6 14 laptop features Intel Core Ultra 7 processors with Intel vPro Enterprise, Intel Graphics, and Intel AI Boost.
Will AI PCs Boost the Market?
While Acer’s introduction of AI-capable PCs is impressive, other PC manufacturers have swiftly followed suit. Dell and HP have also released AI-powered PCs in the Indian market this year. Most recently, Microsoft unveiled its Surface AI PCs in India, featuring Snapdragon Elite Processors.
PC makers are hoping AI could help pull the market from the stalemate that it was last year. Research firm Canalys predicts that the PC market will see an 8% annual growth in 2024 as more AI PCs hit the market. Canalys also predicts AI PCs will capture 60% of the market by 2027.
Goel also believes generative AI has the potential to significantly boost laptop sales. “Over the past few years, the PC industry has been striving to make devices more powerful, efficient, thinner, and lighter. However, it lacked a transformative technology that could truly revolutionise the market. With the advent of AI, this missing piece has finally arrived,” he said.
AI-driven workloads in PCs could enhance performance, enable new functionalities, and create a more seamless user experience. PCs makers are desperately banking for this to happen.
Acer, too Turns to Server Business and Consumer Electronics
Earlier this year, Acer also launched its consumer electronics and home appliances brand, Acer Pure in India. When we asked Goel whether it is a result of declining PC sales, he said, “Acer India is the fastest-growing PC brand in India, and we have seen remarkable YoY growth for our PC business with 2X growth in the consumer market and market leadership in some of the commercial segments.”
He stressed that PCs remain Acer’s core business. Interestingly, Acer also launched its server business in India a few years back, a segment dominated by Dell, HP, and Lenovo, other PC brands Acer competes with.
Called Altos Computing, it caters to the growing demand for high-performance servers and workstations in India’s digital infrastructure landscape.
“It includes introducing AI-powered solutions to support local cloud and data storage initiatives, which are crucial for governmental and corporate digital transformation priorities,” Goel concluded.
