Zhitong Finance learned that before the Build Annual Global Developers Conference was held this Tuesday, Microsoft (MSFT.US) announced that its AI assistant Copilot will be fully integrated into the Windows system. Microsoft has introduced a new artificial intelligence computer called CoPilot+ PC. The company said that thanks in part to chips dedicated to artificial intelligence processing, machines from the Microsoft Surface series and other manufacturers will run 40+ tops/second, and will be 58% more powerful and 58% faster than Apple's (AAPL.US) top-tier MacBook Air M3. The price of the new hardware Copilot+Surface Pro starts at 999 US dollars, domestic sales start at 8,688 yuan, and will be shipped on June 18.

Microsoft is promoting new computers equipped with advanced chips designed to run the artificial intelligence features of Windows software without quickly running out of battery life. The company on Monday unveiled the Surface Laptop and a Surface Pro tablet equipped with Qualcomm chips that can run some artificial intelligence tasks without an internet connection. Other computer manufacturers such as Lenovo, Dell, HP, Asus, Acer, and Samsung are also launching artificial intelligence-enabled personal computers. These computers use Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus processors, which are expected to extend battery life and will run Microsoft's Copilot AI chatbot.

Microsoft said that device manufacturers will release PCs equipped with AMD and Intel chips at a later date, and these chips will follow the Copilot+ standard. These PCs will be able to translate audio, recommend responses to incoming messages, suggest changes to the settings app, and even discuss what's on the screen with people. The new Recall feature helps you find content you've watched on your PC, and provides real-time subtitles translated into more than 40 languages, including Chinese.

The Recall function will be able to search the logs of previous actions on the PC. Recall relies on an artificial intelligence model that runs directly on the device, so it works offline, and the data is never indexed to the remote server. Artificial intelligence models will be able to generate images based on written descriptions and drawings.

Competing with Apple iMac

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella believes that a new generation of computers equipped with special artificial intelligence chips and faster performance will restart the long-term competition between Windows computers and Apple's Mac computers. In an interview on Monday, Nadella said: “Apple has done a fantastic job. We now want Windows and Mac to get back into real competition.”

Microsoft is counting on Qualcomm's Arm-based energy-efficient chips that can handle artificial intelligence models to defend its Windows franchise. As Macbooks equipped with Arm chips replace Intel, the world's largest computer processor supplier, Apple's market share in PC shipments has increased.

Microsoft is working to provide Chatgpt-like functionality to consumers and business users. With support from Microsoft, OpenAI released the ChatGPT chatbot at the end of 2022, which rapidly evolved as a tool to quickly obtain computer-generated poems, email drafts, and historical event summaries.

Apple is catching up with big tech rivals in the field of artificial intelligence, and it is preparing to develop an ambitious strategy at next month's Global Developers Conference. According to previous reports, the company is putting high-end chips — similar to those designed for Macs — into cloud computing servers that handle the most advanced artificial intelligence tasks that are about to appear on Apple devices. Simpler artificial intelligence-related functions will be handled directly on the iPhone, iPad, and iMac. Apple will focus on features that make everyday life easier for users — for example, by making suggestions and providing customized experiences.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is using its relationship with leading artificial intelligence startup OpenAI to gain an early leading position in the emerging field of generative artificial intelligence services. However, the partnership has been scrutinized by regulators. Officials in the US, Europe, and the UK are reviewing AI investments from Microsoft and its rivals to determine whether these investments will affect competition or whether they should be more strictly regulated like mergers and acquisitions.

Nadella said Microsoft's partnership is increasing competition in this emerging field rather than limiting competition. Nadella said, “Today's competition is very intense, right? Whether it's a big player or a small player. So I don't think it's a matter of a company buying or not buying; it's a matter of competition.”

Promoting Windows on ARM

Other big tech companies, including Microsoft, soon began using generative artificial intelligence to enhance their products. The Copilot chatbot based on ChatGPT's underlying artificial intelligence model landed on the Bing search engine along with Windows 10 and Windows 11 operating systems. Those who subscribe to Office software can have Copilot provide written responses to their documents for an additional fee.

ChatGPT's internal GPT-4 model only completed the necessary computational work on Microsoft's Azure cloud. The new PC can run some artificial intelligence models locally without an internet connection. Nearly four months ago, Nadella told analysts during the company's earnings call, “By 2024, artificial intelligence will be the first and most important component of every personal computer.”

Microsoft has had little success in getting people to use Arm-based Windows computers, which don't always perform as well as personal computers running Intel or AMD chips. Some apps aren't compatible. Running generative AI locally means computers will require more power, and strong battery life is even more critical. This might make Windows on Arm more appealing. According to a report sent to customers earlier this month, analysts at Morgan Stanley expect Arm systems to account for 14% of all Windows PC shipments by 2026, up from 0% in 2023.

While Microsoft is taking the lead in expanding hardware products, it is also cooperating with Adobe in this event to further advance the Windows on ARM project. Microsoft said at this event that Adobe's full suite of apps will soon appear on “Copilot+ PC” devices. Photoshop, Lightroom, Firefly, and Express are all now available, and Adobe also said it will launch Illustrator and Premiere Pro in June.