Gartner analysts are optimistic about the future of AI-enabled PCs, with a new report predicting that 43% of all PC shipments will be AI-enabled by 2025, up from 17% in 2024.
This trend coincides with Microsoft and Apple's plans to integrate generative AI more regularly into devices. While many Apple Intelligence features are not yet fully available, the necessary hardware is already present on devices. Microsoft's Copilot, meanwhile, is more accessible.
Is the AI-powered PC the future of computing or a passing trend?
AI PC shipments are expected to grow by 165%
Gartner predicts that AI-powered PC shipments will grow to 114 million units in 2025, up 165.5% from 2024. Additionally, by 2026, AI-powered PCs will be the only choice for large enterprises when purchasing new laptops.
The report defines AI PCs as those equipped with a neural processing unit, such as Windows on Arm, macOS on Arm, and x86 on Windows PCs. Microsoft’s Surface 7th Edition and later have NPUs, as do laptops with Apple’s M3 and M4 chips.
WATCH: Competition among and for AI chips remains fierce, with cloud providers trying to reduce dependence on dominant vendors.
“As the PC market transitions from non-AI PCs to AI PCs, x-86 dominance will shrink over time, especially in the consumer AI laptop market as Arm-based AI laptops take more share from Windows x86 AI and non-AI laptops,” said Ranjit Atwal, senior director analyst at Gartner, in a press release. “However, by 2025, Windows x86-based AI laptops will lead the enterprise segment.”
Other key findings from the report include:
- AI laptop shipments will account for 51% of total laptop shipments by 2025.
- NPU-enabled laptops accounted for only 5% of laptops available to large enterprises in 2023.
“The debate has shifted from speculation about which PCs might include AI capabilities to the expectation that most PCs will eventually integrate AI NPU capabilities,” Atwal added. “As a result, the NPU will become a standard feature for PC vendors.”
Disadvantages of the ubiquity of generative AI on PCs
In an email to TechRepublic, Atwal said consumers are increasingly aware of the need to future-proof their purchases.
“However, the return on investment of AI is still being determined and, without clear ‘killer applications’, many are hesitant to pay a premium for AI capabilities in their laptops any time soon,” he added.
Generative AI has many benefits (including its ability to create new content and even write code), but there is an ongoing debate about whether the output meets professional quality standards. Other reports have shown that AI can generate bad code, create security issues, or encourage developers to review their work less thoroughly. While AI attracts investment money, proving ROI is difficult. And 30% of AI projects may be abandoned after the proof-of-concept stage.
Atwal also noted that “the environmental footprint of AI” could be an area of concern, as research has shown that the technology could have a negative impact on the environment.
“While manufacturing new NPU technology may increase the initial environmental impact, it could offset some of the AI processing done in the cloud by processing data locally on the device,” he said. “This reduces the need for power-intensive data transmission to the cloud in specific use cases.”
Atwal, however, remains hopeful for a future driven by AI advances.
“The benefits will become more evident as we move from the reactive nature of current AI to proactive actions driven by generative AI (GenAI and AI Agents),” he wrote.
