Days ahead of Apple’s WWDC event, Microsoft’s AI laptop endeavor, Copilot+, faces an unexpected setback. While the initial Copilot+ devices are slated to debut on June 18, it has emerged that only a segment of the new laptops carrying the Copilot+ branding will feature advanced AI capabilities right from the start.
This development comes as a surprise, especially since chip manufacturers AMD and Intel announced at Computex their plans to release Copilot+ compatible laptop chips later in the fall. Prior to this, Microsoft had primarily discussed Copilot+ integration with Windows on Arm devices, which utilize Qualcomm chips.
To clarify, Copilot+ laptops are now divided across three different chipsets, with two of them experiencing delays in accessing the full suite of features. Representatives from Microsoft, Intel, AMD, and Nvidia have confirmed to The Verge that non-Qualcomm laptops will need to wait for their Copilot+ capabilities. While Arm-based laptops are set to debut with features like Recall and the gaming-centric Auto Super Resolution mode, those equipped with AMD and Intel chips will require “free updates” to access these features, as stated by Microsoft marketing manager James Howell.
According to AMD PR manager Matthew Hurwitz, these “Copilot+ experiences” for AMD-based devices may not arrive until “the end of 2024.”
While some anticipation for delays might have existed, the clarity on language and potential timelines was lacking until now. Intel’s own press release for its AI laptop chips noted that Copilot+ features would be delivered via free updates “when available.”
This situation presents a challenge for Microsoft, especially as Apple gears up to introduce its own AI features in macOS 15. While Apple users can typically assume that a new Mac will offer all Mac functionalities, Windows users exploring AI will now have to navigate between three options, requiring more research to understand the capabilities of their new machines out of the box.
