Microsoft’s New Surface Devices Put Copilot AI at Users’ Fingertips

In March 2024, Microsoft launched the first Surface laptops and tablets designed for businesses and powered by artificial intelligence. The Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10 are equipped with the Windows 11 Pro operating system, the newest Intel Core Ultra processors and the Microsoft Copilot AI assistant. The result is a seamless integration of AI capabilities across the ecosystem that embeds efficiencies exactly where users need them: throughout their day-to-day workflows.

A redesigned neural processing unit, created with AI in mind, is where the Surface truly shines. Whereas previous Surfaces offloaded AI workloads to the NPU exclusively, the new architecture dynamically allocates workloads among the NPU, CPU and GPU, allowing the Surface to run resource-intensive AI applications without degraded performance. This ensures users can confidently take advantage of built-in AI capabilities without worrying about draining the battery or compromising other work tasks. That’s a welcome capability for every user, but especially for those who frequently work in the field or while traveling.

Copilot, Microsoft’s built-in AI assistant, delivers unique advantages when paired with Surface devices. Ease of access is central, and users can input commands in multiple ways: by touch, voice, the Surface Slim Pen (for the tablet) or a dedicated key on the Surface Pro keyboard that activates Copilot in Windows. Instant access reduces friction and makes it easy for users to incorporate Copilot in their workflows, whether they want to generate a quick video script or summarize information from the web.

Organizations with Microsoft 365 gain even more functionality with Copilot, including the ability to customize the assistant with company-specific data. For instance, an employee using Copilot in Microsoft 365 could request information about HR policies, create a summary of a recent project or perform tasks within OneNote and other applications. It’s important to note that whatever security, privacy and compliance practices a company establishes in Microsoft 365 will automatically extend to Copilot.

Surface’s NPU also drives AI within Windows Studio Effects, a suite of tools that delivers an intelligent collaboration experience. An advanced microphone, camera and speakers allow for exceptional audiovisual quality, even when a user is joining a video under less-than-perfect conditions. Studio Effects can make automatic adjustments such as eye contact correction, for example, so it appears that the user is looking directly into the video camera, and auto-frames the speaker in the center of the screen even if they move around the room. Background effects further enhance this experience by allowing users to blur their background, ensuring that they remain the focus of the conversation regardless of their surroundings.

Studio Effects also uses voice focus to block out extraneous sounds and ensure that listeners hear clear, consistent audio. For example, if a user needs to call into a video meeting from an airport or a noisy manufacturing environment, voice focus mutes background noise so that listeners can hear the speaker more clearly. Voice focus also helps users who need to move around during video meetings, such as a healthcare clinician examining a patient during a virtual consultation with a colleague (and, of course, users who prefer to pace while they present). In these cases, the embedded AI automatically maintains a crisp, consistent sound level even if the user physically moves several feet away from the Surface device.

With the new Surface laptops and tablets, AI is simply part of the toolbox: easy to access, versatile in its applications and ready to deliver a new level of efficiency to users.