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Intel gears up for Copilot+ PCs with Lunar Lake processors, arriving in Q3 2024

Intel has announced that its upcoming , which will support Microsoft's new experience, will be released in Q3 2024. The Lunar Lake processors will feature a next-gen NPU (Neural Processing Unit) that Intel says will deliver over (or tera operations per second) of AI performance. This meets Microsoft's minimum requirements for Copilot+ certified PCs, which mandates that on top of a minimum 16GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage, processors powering these PCs must also have an integrated NPU with 40+ TOPS. Lunar Lake processors are not just bringing improved AI performance. It also comes with an upgraded integrated GPU to the Xe2 architecture, which incorporates elements from the upcoming ( ) and will have – giving the processors . This design allows Lunar Lake processors to balance efficient AI task offloading without impacting GPU performance. This allows Copilot to, for example, offer suggested actions while you are playing a game without affecting frame rates in the game. The AI-enhanced PCs landscape is getting more competitive and the collaboration between Microsoft and chip makers like Intel, AMD and Qualcomm is amplifying it. While Qualcomm's was initially seen as the leading choice, Intel's announcement shows that PC makers have viable alternatives, and the tech giant has even said that there are “over 80 new notebook designs” from “more than 20 OEM partners” in development. Clearly, Intel is taking AI PCs very seriously and for consumers this can only be a good thing, as it not only means more options for Copilot+ PCs soon, but we can also expect competitive performance and a variety of designs from different OEMs.