Copilot+ PCs are a big deal for Microsoft, Windows and the manufacturers that are making them. By all accounts, the Snapdragon X Elite chip powering most of the new breed is astonishingly good, and on the whole the members of our team that have begun testing them are impressed.
But the hardware is only part of the equation, and Copilot+ has had its fair share of bad headlines since it was announced. Perhaps deserving, but nevertheless, Windows Recall isn't my own beef with it. It's how Microsoft has seen fit to handle its rollout.
Copilot+ is all software, albeit with a hardware requirement. But I have here a laptop with a Ryzen 9 CPU and an NVIDIA RTX 4090 dedicated GPU inside that can easily run Copilot+, and yet it can't. It can't because of a conscious decision by Microsoft to keep one of the biggest advancements in Windows 11 exclusive to those who decide to drop at least $1,000 on a new laptop.
And that stinks.
NVIDIA will be getting Copilot+, but we have no idea when
NVIDIA has already announced that its RTX GPUs will be able to power Copilot+ and also that new laptops supporting the feature will be coming. The problem is that we don't know when this will happen, and if it happens at all in 2024, it'll be a surprise. All we do know is it'll be a free update "when available."
There have been rumors of a Microsoft exclusivity agreement with Qualcomm ending this year around ARM chips in laptops, backed by further rumors that NVIDIA is looking itself to get into the ARM game post-2024. The skeptical brain in my head would say this agreement is also going to cover Copilot+, which would suggest Microsoft chose to line its pockets over servicing millions of existing Windows users.
This is all speculation, of course, but there has to be a reason why existing, more than capable hardware is being locked out of Copilot+. Let's face it, money talks, so it's not hard to believe it could be behind this decision. It doesn't make it any better, though.
NVIDIA RTX GPUs will CRUSH current NPUs for AI
The other baffling part of this to me is that existing laptops with NVIDIA 40 series GPUs inside have capabilities for AI far beyond the NPUs currently being deployed by Qualcomm. Copilot+ demands a minimum of 40 TOPS to operate locally. The RTX 4050, the bottom rung of the ladder, boasts up to 194 TOPS, while the RTX 4090 that I have goes up to a staggering 686 TOPS. Both of these are multiples more powerful than the 40 TOPS requirement for Copilot+ and, importantly, already in the hands of millions of Windows users worldwide.
NVIDIA has risen to the lofty heights of claiming the title of the world's most valuable company, in part thanks to the AI boom. The company's ceiling is sky-high as all around the globe, businesses of all sizes scramble to get in on the action. NVIDIA itself has been building out its own AI software portfolio for some time, utilizing its hardware in apps such as NVIDIA Broadcast, and the more recent developments, RTX Chat and RTX Video.
Copilot+ is clearly a big deal, and equally clearly a huge part of the future of Windows. Yet only a small subset of Windows 11 users can even try it right now. By the time this free update comes out, will anyone using an NVIDIA, Intel or AMD PC compatible with the feature remember what it is? Or even care?
Mass adoption over marketing
I firmly believe that mass adoption of Copilot+ immediately should have been a priority over any kind of deal or carefully crafted marketing campaign. And let's face it, with the Windows Recall debacle, the marketing has already fallen on its face. There's too much negative buzz over what should be a monumental shift in how we use our PCs, and it's unlikely to dissipate when the overwhelming majority can't even use it for themselves.
The way to get people behind Copilot+ is simply to get them using it first-hand. We're going to do our absolute best to cover Copilot+ developments through the rest of 2024 and beyond, but it's already difficult. And this is what we do. The only members of the Windows Central team even able to contribute to our Copilot+ knowledge base right now are those who have been sent Snapdragon X Elite review units from the various manufacturers.
I want Copilot+ to succeed. AI is an exciting development in technology, and I'm already using it plenty. But I'm also a firm believer in putting your best foot forward. The best foot here would have been to reveal it and get it into as many hands as possible, and that's not happening. It's hard to generate excitement for a feature nobody can use, and it's even harder to have any control over the narrative when nobody can see the product for themselves.
It won't happen, but I beg of you Microsoft, get Copilot+ out to as many people as possible, as quickly as possible.
