AMD came out swinging at rival Intel by unveiling its next lineup of laptop processors for 2024 – a massive 9 new Ryzen 8040 chips equipped with the company’s AI-focused ‘XDNA’ neural engine. Sporting the codename ‘Hawk Point’, these next-gen AMD processors are already being shipped off to major manufacturers like Asus, Acer, and Lenovo to power devices launching early next year.
Even the most affordable Ryzen 3 8440U model packs the AI-accelerating XDNA technology. And while AMD trumpeted potential enterprise use cases, what’s key here is that on-device AI looks set to hit the mainstream in 2024. Unlike cloud services like ChatGPT, local AI allows laptops to run workloads using their own processors rather than offloading to remote servers.
This on-chip approach brings noticeable perks – no mandatory internet connection and added security due to data never leaving the device. AMD is also cooking up next-gen ‘Strix Point’ chips for later in 2024 with XDNA 2 technology, vowing more than 3x the AI performance over the initial XDNA release.
Compared to both AMD’s prior 7000 series and Intel’s leading laptop chips, the Hawk Point lineup promises big gen-on-gen bumps in both overall performance and AI capabilities specifically. If AMD delivers on its promises, these could be some of the most potent laptop processors ever – bringing speedy on-device AI to mid-priced portables. With muscular performance and serious machine learning skills, AMD’s 2024 mobile lineup looks incredibly formidable.
