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Microsoft just wrapped up a big Windows and Surface-focused keynote in San Francisco. The biggest announcement was arguably the release details about the Surface Laptop Ultra, its new laptop that’s powered by Nvidia’s RTX Spark Arm-based chip. The machine will start at $2,599 for a configuration with an 8-core CPU, 24GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage, and it will be released on October 16th. The laptop also has built-in magnetic USB-C charging instead of the proprietary Surface Connect magnetic charging port. The Verge’s Tom Warren published a deep dive all about the new laptop. Microsoft also announced that the Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, a mini PC for developers, is available for preorder for $5,999 ahead of shipping in November. In addition, Microsoft shared details about some updates coming to Windows, including “Hybrid Intelligence” features that lets Copilot use files on your Windows PC to take actions and a new search experience that lets you do quick actions from the search bar. You can catch up with all of our coverage from the event right here. - Pinned How Microsoft built its MacBook Pro competitor Before Microsoft releases a laptop to the public, it needs to put the device through its paces. That all happens inside a windowless, warehouse-like lab on the company’s Redmond, Washington, campus, where the team developing Surface devices programs robots to press their buttons thousands of times, pelts devices with radio waves from giant antennas, and builds contraptions that drop objects from increasingly daring heights to see whether the products can hold up. Its latest laptop, the product I’m here to see, really needs to hold up. The Surface Laptop Ultra isn’t just another high-end config of the Surface Laptop, it’s the debut platform for Nvidia’s RTX Spark — Nvidia’s entrance into the world of Arm-based PC chips, and a chance to blow expectations out of the water when it comes to what a Windows laptop is capable of. Read Article > - The first Nvidia RTX Spark laptops cost up to $7,000 The first array of laptops powered by Nvidia’s new RTX Spark chip are designed to compete with high-end MacBook Pros — and they’ve got some high-end prices to match. Read Article > - Microsoft is giving Copilot more control over Windows and your files At today’s Windows and Surface event, Microsoft showed off an upgrade to its Copilot AI system that will give it access to local files on your PC and the ability to take actions across the OS. It’s part of an idea Microsoft is calling “Hybrid Intelligence,” where apps and tools rely on a mix of local and cloud AI models to accomplish tasks efficiently. To show off how Hybrid Intelligence works, Jacob Andreou, Microsoft’s EVP of Copilot, walked through a video demo onstage asking Microsoft’s Autopilot tool to help with filing taxes. Andreou told the AI agent that he got an email from his accountant and asked Autopilot to get her what she needs. Autopilot then used Hybrid Intelligence to search across different folders to find the documents, rename the files, zip them into a folder, and draft an email to send to the accountant with the zip file attached. Read Article > - Tom Warren and Emma Roth The Surface Laptop Ultra finally has a release date — and a starting price of $2,599 Months after revealing its Surface Laptop Ultra, Microsoft has announced that the Nvidia RTX Spark-equipped device will launch on October 16th. Pricing starts at $2,599 for the base configuration, featuring an 18-core CPU, 24GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. The Surface Laptop Ultra ships with a 15-inch HDR touchscreen display with up to 2,000 nits of peak brightness, along with a larger trackpad that supports haptic feedback. The device uses Nvidia’s new RTX Spark chip, an Arm-based processor with up to 128GB of unified memory. Both Microsoft and Nvidia are positioning RTX Spark laptops at the very premium end of the laptop market, designed for high performance across creative software, gaming, and local AI tasks. Read Article > - Surface RTX Spark Dev Box is available for preorder for $5,999 Microsoft’s Nvidia-powered Surface RTX Spark Dev Box is available for preorder now and is slated to ship in November for just about $6,000. It’s pricier than the DGX Spark mini PC Nvidia launched last year, but PC prices have been climbing due to shortages of RAM and other components. The Dev Box’s flat, 3D-printed anodized aluminum chassis doubles as a heatsink and resembles the top vents on an Xbox Series X. It was introduced alongside the new Surface Laptop Ultra and runs on Nvidia’s Arm-based RTX Spark platform and 128GB of unified memory. With that much memory, along with a 100-watt thermal envelope and Nvidia’s Tensor cores, you could probably get an impressive gaming experience on the Dev Box. But as its name suggests, it’s mainly aimed at developers. It’s optimized for running local AI, including “models exceeding 120B parameters,” for tasks like testing AI models, prototyping AI agents, or running AI coding tools on-device. Read Article > - Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Ultra has built-in magnetic USB-C charging Microsoft has created a magnetic charging solution for its Surface Laptop Ultra that uses USB-C. After scrapping its proprietary Surface Connect magnetic charging on its smaller Surface devices last year, the Surface Laptop Ultra has a charging cable that attaches magnetically to the right side USB-C port. During Microsoft’s Windows event on Wednesday, Windows and Surface chief Pavan Davuluri said that you can just “bring the connector close, and it snaps right into place.“ It’s still a proprietary solution, but the USB-C port it slots into still works for video, data, and other USB-C connectivity like you’d expect. Microsoft is calling it Magnetic Connect, and I’m surprised the company hasn’t shortened that to Mag-C. Read Article > - Muse is coming to Windows. Meta’s new AI agent will be getting a native app on Windows, Windows and Surface chief Pavan Davuluri announced at today’s event. No timeline on when, though. Meta launched a Mac Muse app in September. - Windows and Surface live blog: On the ground at Microsoft’s event We’re in San Francisco today to hear what’s next for Windows and Surface. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and Windows and Surface chief Pavan Davuluri will all be holding a “conversation on how local AI will shape the next chapter of the PC.” Microsoft and Nvidia have been working together on the new RTX Spark platform, which is focused on boosting local AI models, creative apps, and even gaming on a series of new laptops. Nvidia’s GPU expertise is getting squeezed into laptops like the Surface Laptop Ultra, and we’re about to find out exactly what it’s capable of. Read Article >
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