Microsoft Launches New Flagship Laptop Equipped With NVIDIA Chips, Outperforming Apple's Macbook In AI Tasks!

On Wednesday, Microsoft held a Surface product launch event, announcing the price and launch schedule of the new flagship laptop Surface Laptop Ultra equipped with NVIDIA chips, and stated that its performance in certain AI tasks surpasses Apple's counterparts.

According to Microsoft executives on Wednesday, the Surface Laptop Ultra can process prompt messages at twice the speed of Apple's MacBook Pro M5 when running native AI models, and generate video at six times faster than similar Apple devices. Pre-orders for the Surface Laptop Ultra are now open and shipping will begin on October 16; The starting price is $2,599, about $400 cheaper than the entry-level 16-inch MacBook Pro. This brand-new Surface device is built on an NVIDIA chip designed for Windows laptops. The chip will support both general-purpose computing and AI computing. This also opens up a new competitive arena between NVIDIA and mainstream general-purpose PC processor manufacturers such as Intel and AMD.

This is not the first time Microsoft has tried to leverage the AI boom to boost device sales. In the summer of 2024, Microsoft, together with partners like Qualcomm, launched a large-scale marketing campaign targeting AI-optimized PCs. At the time, Microsoft promised that these devices would embed AI functions directly into the device and implement it by using more powerful chips designed by Arm Holdings. However, the launch of this product line was plagued by privacy concerns caused by one of its flagship features, which was originally intended to provide users with a useful record of device operation.

In recent years, as Apple's desktop computers have seen a surge in demand due to their outstanding performance in running AI models, Microsoft is striving to maintain the dominance of Windows operating systems in the AI era. According to estimates from research institutions, although Microsoft Windows is the most popular PC operating system, by shipment volume, the company is not among the world's top six PC manufacturers.

With advances in AI and chip technology, tech giants including Microsoft, Apple, and Google are working to enable users to run AI workloads more locally from their devices, rather than relying on the cloud. Over time, developers and users will expect AI tools to be supported by computing power from local hardware and cloud services together.

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Microsoft executives outlined the advantages of using Windows for AI-related tasks. Developers can leverage the computing power of new devices without paying cloud service providers, thereby saving costs and improving security. These features can be used to monitor and control the behavior of AI agents. Additionally, Meta will launch a Windows version of its popular Muse AI agent.