This is how I want to explain AI PC to my confused friends and relatives
It occurred to me this morning that I will soon be explaining to a friend or family member what an “AI PC” is and what to do with it.
The answer seems obvious to me, because I’ve been covering AI and PCs for decades. But as I try to express the meaning, I stumble:
- “A smarter PC?”
- “A more proactive PC”?
- “A PC with ‘Her’ in it”?
None of that comes close to capturing it. What makes more sense is this:
“A PC that works as they promised when we first started using computers.”
Instead of a closed box of information, reminders, and apps that can sort through everything, it’s a miracle box that anticipates your intentions, takes action on your behalf, and never leaves you wondering, “How do I do that?”
Admittedly, the AI PCs you’ll see this summer still aren’t quite that. However, there will be hints of that power and potential.
Microsoft’s one-button Copilot access on the new Surface Windows PCs it builds and countless partner laptops and desktops aren’t just marketing stunts. The Copilot button can initially be thought of as an ‘if all else fails’ button. If you press it, Copilot might save you, because you can ask your question in a way that makes sense to you. An AI PC knows itself like you know yourself. It knows more about the computer’s internal workings, settings, and AI-enabled apps than you do and may not let you wade through apps, settings, and menus to get results.
This might be better
The menu system of any application is a developer’s best guess at the intentions of millions of users, and trying to please everyone usually ends up satisfying no one.
AI-integrated machines will surpass the rudimentary intelligence of your average PC and apps with something approaching human reasoning. This action can turn your PC into the digital companion you always wanted. Unlike little AI-infused gadgets like Rabbit R1 and Humane AI, they won’t insist that you learn a new usage paradigm. These AI PCs look like your old PCs, which means you can use them however you want, in any way you want, and tap into that new AI superpower when necessary.
If my friends and relatives also ask how the PC can be so smart, where all that intelligence resides, and if every question they ask ends up in the hands of a third party, then the conversation can get a little more complicated.
Breaking down this complex problem, I would like to explain that most AI PCs will take a half-and-half approach. Some of the intelligence will be there, in the brand new AI Brain or NPU, but the rest could be on cloud servers owned by Microsoft, Apple or even Google. Choosing your new AI PC comes down to who you trust to keep your questions private.
I’m also pretty sure this explanation will hold up next month when Apple introduces its own AI Macs (they’re PCs too, by the way)
Yes, this is what I will say if someone asks me.