On Monday, Microsoft announced a new class of laptops called Copilot+ PCs, which will have a neural processing unit designed to handle generative AI apps and tools. The first Copilot+ PC notebooks will launch in June from a number of major PC makers and will have Qualcomm"s new Snapdragon X Elite or Plus processors.
Today, as part of Microsoft Build 2024, the company and Qualcomm announced it will give developers another tool to make Copilot+ PC apps that work with the Snapdragon X chips. It is called the Snapdragon Dev Kit for Windows, and it will have a developer version of the Snapdragon X SoC inside.
Microsoft stated:
Featuring the NPU that powers the Copilot+ PCs, the Snapdragon Dev Kit for Windows has a form factor that is easily stackable and is designed specifically to be a developer’s everyday dev box, providing the maximum power and flexibility developers need. It is powered by a 3.8 GHz 12 Core Oryon CPU with dual core boost up to 4.4GHz, comes with 32 GB LPDDR5x memory, 512GB M2 storage, 80 Watt system architecture, support for up to 3 concurrent external displays and uses 20% ocean bound plastic.
There"s no word yet on when the Snapdragon Dev Kit for Windows will become available, nor how much it will cost.
Microsoft also announced a new emulation engine called Prism. It is supposed to help create code for emulated x86/x64 apps that will be used on Arm-based chips. The engine will help the emulated apps run faster on any Windows Arm-based device. Prism is now available in a preview version.
Copilot+ PC notebooks were announced on Monday by Dell, HP, Asus, Acer, Lenovo, Samsung, and Microsoft, which will release a version of its Surface Laptop and also its Surface Pro tablet with an OLED display that will have Snapdragon X Elite chips. The cheapest Copilot+ PCs will be priced at $999.99, but most will be in the mid-$1,000 range.
Intel has also announced that its upcoming Lunar Lake processors will be in laptops that are branded as Copilot+ PCs, but they won"t be available until sometime in the third quarter of 2024.