MediaTek will launch ARM chips for Microsoft’s Copilot+PCs, according to rumor

A MediaTek will start producing chips with ARM architecture compatible with Copilot+ PCs and Microsoft. The company should debut in the notebook segment starting next year. The information came from anonymous sources familiar with the matter, but has not yet been confirmed by any of the parties involved.

Apparently, MediaTek is just waiting for the exclusive contract for the supply of ARM chips between Qualcomm and Microsoft to end. This is planned for this year. That’s why, the company would be developing its first ARM chipsets compatible with the Windows to debut only in 2025.

Good acceptance of the Dimensity 9300 may have encouraged MediaTek to enter the ARM notebook market.Source: MediaTek/Disclosure

Apparently, Copilot+ PCs would be the manufacturer’s focus, but nothing prevents it from launching processors to equip notebooks without artificial intelligence (AI).

Copilot+PC is a certification created by Microsoft to authenticate computers equipped with processors that have an NPU dedicated to AI tasks. The company announced that these notebooks must offer at least 40 TOPS of AI performance to receive the seal.

The first ARM notebooks with Windows hit the market in 2018, all equipped with Snapdragon chipsets. But it is only now, after the launch of the Snapdragon X Elite, that these devices have aroused greater public interest. Qualcomm’s new processor has been praised for combining high performance and incredible energy efficiency.

Apple x Microsoft

Until this year, Apple has dominated the ARM notebook market. The company announced its first MacBook with this architecture in 2020. Since then, notebooks with Windows ARM have been left behind. Now, Microsoft has the opportunity to capture a larger share of this segment, counting on the success of Snapdragon chips.

Microsoft announces the Copilot+ PC promising superior performance to the MacBook Air M3.Source: The Verge/Allison Johnson/Reproduction

If the sources of Reuters are correct, MediaTek will be another manufacturer surfing this wave. Intel and AMD already have powerful AI NPU chips, but Qualcomm demands the crown of “best performance per watt consumed”.

This race for energy efficiency can make a difference when we talk about portable devices that use batteries. Proof of this is that Samsung, Nvidia and AMD may also launch ARM chips soon. The Nvidia project would even have co-participation from MediaTek.