The presence of three distinct chip types in AI laptops today — Snapdragon X Series processors, Ryzen AI chips, and Intel x86 chips — has left many users confused, especially when the same OEMs offer laptops with different chips.
As a result, consumers frequently ask: Which one is the best? The abundance of choices can be overwhelming.
During the HP Imagine AI event in New York City, I questioned Guayente Sanmartin, SVP and division president of commercial systems and display solutions, about how HP plans to simplify this complex environment for consumers. Her solution? To align different technologies with specific consumer personas, thus personalizing the user experience.
“AI is a journey of innovation that’s not stopping. The fact that there’s a lot of innovation is the best thing that can happen for both technology and consumers,” said Sanmartin.
“Of course, we’re going to be partnering with everyone to forward innovation. Having all those technologies allows us to reach everyone. By reaching everyone, HP’s strategy is to capitalize on the benefits of each technology — high TOPS to the technical expert, long battery life for the hybrid worker, and so on.”
This philosophy currently shapes the design strategy for HP’s Copilot+ PC laptops.
A concrete example of this in action was demonstrated with HP’s OmniBook series. At the event, HP introduced the new OmniBook Ultra, powered by a Ryzen AI 300 chip with a leading 55 TOPS NPU processing power.
The OmniBook Ultra’s 55 TOPS power surpasses the 40 TOPS power in the Snapdragon X Series powered HP OmniBook X, enabling it to run AI models and collaboration software more swiftly and manage more applications simultaneously, making it suitable for technical experts.
On the other hand, the OmniBook X excels in power efficiency with a 26-hour battery life (compared to the OmniBook Ultra’s 21-hour battery life). It is also slightly thinner and lighter, making it ideal for mobile working professionals.
“We look at the different consumer personas, the modern leader versus the technical expert, like a freelancer. Those different personas are going to need different systems,” Sanmartin elaborated.
“The technical expert is going to need higher capacities and all the best technologies — so they’re going to need a balance between the different high-end features, performance, and weight. So, we’re going to be adapting the different chip technologies for those different personas,” she said.
For consumers, this means focusing on the specific functionality of HP’s laptops to identify the most suitable AI processor for their needs.