Lenovo Debuts First Laptops With Copilot Key As AI Companion Drives PC War

As 2024 rolls on, Lenovo‘s latest laptops powered by Intel’s Core Ultra processors have hit the market. With it, comes support for Windows’ Copilot button and a bigger focus on AI features on the laptop – all that takes place on the laptop itself without an active connection to the Internet.

Representing the best that Lenovo has to offer, the Yoga Book 9i (starting from S$$3,249.30) with its dual displays leads the charge followed by the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i (starting from S$3,139). Depending on your needs, there will be a specific laptop within Lenovo’s range of devices to fit your use case and budget. However, with AI being the biggest buzzword these days, earning the title of “AI PC” is not that easy according to Microsoft.

To obtain Microsoft’s seal of approval, there are 3 criteria that PC OEMs will need to adhere to, which are – having the latest CPUs which come with a neural processor, access to Copilot, and having a dedicated, physical Copilot key on the PC’s keyboard.

Copilot is Windows’ take on a chat-based AI assistant and is available to most users worldwide right from their desktop. It’s seen as a replacement for Microsoft’s discontinued virtual assistant, Cortana. For most users, pressing the shortcut of Windows Button + C, brings up the Copilot app. Otherwise, it’ll lead users to the search bar instead if Copilot is not available in your part of the world.

Based on what we’ve seen at Lenovo’s launch event in Bangkok, Thailand, only a few of the laptops on the showcase that fit the bill for now. The Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i is one of the higher-end devices on display that has the Copilot button placed just to the left of the arrow keys on the keyboard.

With the Yoga Pro 9i well position to obtain Windows’ blessings, Lenovo has launched their own app for generating AI-generated images under the Creator Zone. All one needs to do is enter the desired text prompt and the Creator Zone will handle the rest. What sets the Creator Zone apart from other generative AI tools is the ability to have it train its knowledge base on one’s own artwork and generate images without a connection to the Internet. This helps maintain a level of security and privacy if desired. All these features are still undergoing tests and might not make it to the initial release for now.

Apart from the processor refresh, Lenovo also launched their Lenovo Yoga True Wireless Stereo Earbuds and Yoga Pro Bluetooth Mouse. We’ve seen mice from Lenovo before but the appearance of a pair of earbuds and a mouse with a contoured grip might suggest that the company is setting its sights on expanding its offerings in the near future.

Following up in quick succession after their Lenovo Legion Go launch in Singapore, the hype for AI has reached a fever pitch in a short few months. “Lenovo Innovate ‘24 allowed us to truly bring our latest AI-powered PC launches to life, along with the smart technology and experiences they enable. More importantly, this was an opportunity for us to demonstrate our innovative capabilities in personal computing devices,” shares Leon Yu, Asia Pacific Consumer Business Lead for Lenovo, when asked what the company sought to achieve in such a short span of time.

With the advent of the Intel Core Ultra powering Lenovo’s latest range of 2024 devices, it remains to be seen how much of an impact the software side of things marries with the hardware to bring about greater AI adoption soon.