Intel has revealed that starting from the third quarter of 2024, its highly anticipated client processors, codenamed Lunar Lake, are slated to power over 80 fresh laptop designs across more than 20 original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
These processors are primed to usher in a new era of AI performance on a global scale for Copilot+ PCs, set forward by Microsoft.
Underlining the significance of this development, Michelle Johnston Holthaus, Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Client Computing Group at Intel, emphasised the breakthrough power efficiency and compatibility of the x86 architecture. “With breakthrough power efficiency, the trusted compatibility of x86 architecture and the industry’s deepest catalogue of software enablement across the CPU, GPU and NPU, we will deliver the most competitive joint client hardware and software offering in our history with Lunar Lake and Copilot+,” he said.
An AI PC, comprising a CPU, GPU, and NPU, is tailored with specific AI acceleration capabilities. The NPU, in particular, serves as a specialised accelerator for AI and machine learning tasks directly on the PC, bypassing the need for cloud processing. The rising importance of AI PCs stems from the growing necessity to automate and optimise tasks on personal computers.
Lunar Lake is anticipated to revolutionise mobile processing for AI PCs, boasting over three times the AI performance compared to its predecessors. With an impressive 40+ NPU tera operations per second (TOPS), Intel’s next-gen processors are poised to deliver the capabilities required for the upcoming Copilot+ experiences. Moreover, Lunar Lake will feature over 60 GPU TOPS, amounting to more than 100 platform TOPS.
“The launch of Lunar Lake will bring meaningful fundamental improvements across security, battery life, and more thanks to our deep co-engineering partnership with Intel. We are excited to see Lunar Lake come to market with a 40+ TOPS NPU which will deliver Microsoft’s Copilot+ experiences at scale when available,” said Pavan Davuluri, Corporate Vice President of Windows + Devices at Microsoft.
Recognising the importance of both hardware innovation and software enablement, Intel is actively collaborating with over 100 independent software vendors through its AI PC Acceleration Program. This initiative aims to enhance AI PC experiences across various domains, including personal assistants, audio effects, content creation, gaming, security, streaming, and video collaboration.
According to reports, AMD is also coming up with its new APU, Ryzen 8050, featuring Zen 5 CPU and XDNA 2 NPU architecture for AI PC workloads. This will boast a performance of around 50 TOPS, ideal for running Microsoft’s AI PC goals.
