This week, Apple unveiled its latest M4 series chips at a launch event, marking a strong performance in the personal computer market. Apple claims that devices equipped with M4Pro and M4Max significantly surpass competing AI PC chips, particularly in handling artificial intelligence tasks. The M4Pro chip offers up to 14 CPU cores, including 10 high-performance cores and 4 efficient cores, along with 20 GPU cores. Apple stated that the M4Pro excels in AI computing.

Recently, the shipment of AI PCs has been rapidly increasing, thanks to the collective efforts of chip manufacturers like Qualcomm, Intel, and AMD. These companies are driving PCs equipped with neural processing units (NPUs) into the mainstream market, enabling AI computing power directly on personal computers. In addition to the consumer market, businesses and developers are also actively seeking to upgrade their computers, making this upgrade cycle one of the largest in history. Image source notes: The image was generated by AI, image licensed from service provider Midjourney.

At the IFA 2024 exhibition, Intel announced the launch of the Lunar Lake processor series, aiming to reach a target of 100 million AI PC shipments by the end of 2025. Data shows that shipments of AI PCs equipped with Intel Core Ultra processors doubled in the second quarter of 2024, exceeding 15 million units. Canalys predicts that the share of AI PCs in the Windows PC market will increase from less than 10% in 2024 to 30% in 2025.

In Q2 2024, global AI PC shipments reached 8.8 million units, accounting for 14% of total PC shipments, showcasing rapid market growth. AI PCs include desktops and laptops equipped with advanced chipsets, such as NPUs. The Qualcomm Snapdragon X series chips and Copilot+PC signify a new stage in AI PC development. It is expected that shipments will significantly increase in the second half of the year, with total shipments for 2024 projected to reach 44 million units, and it is anticipated to exceed 100 million units by 2025. Apple leads the AI PC market with its Mac products.

Lenovo Group reported impressive performance in its Q1 FY2024/25 earnings report released today. As of June 30, 2024, the quarterly revenue reached 111.9 billion RMB, a 20% increase compared to the same period last year; according to non-Hong Kong financial reporting standards, net profit approached 2.3 billion RMB, achieving a remarkable 65% year-on-year growth. Furthermore, the revenue share from non-PC businesses reached a record 47%.

Apple has released the MacBook Air series products featuring the M3 chip, which shows significant performance improvements and supports large memory capacity and AI functionalities. Apple's capability for practical AI applications remains in a cautious exploratory phase. AIPC has become a hot topic in the PC market, with major manufacturers introducing AI computers. Trends include the enhancement of Arm architecture, the mainstreaming of heterogeneous computing, and an increasing demand for edge AI.

Apple has launched the MacBook Air series equipped with the M3 chip, which features a neural network engine that is 60% faster than the M1 series. The MacBook Air can run optimized AI models locally. Apple CEO Tim Cook discussed the company's views on generative artificial intelligence, making AIPC a hot topic in the market. Future chips will see three major upgrade trends.