Canalys: AI PC Market Share Grew in Q3

AI-powered PCs accounted for nearly 20% of all PC shipments in the third quarter, confirming a growing interest in the AI PC market in the coming months.

AI-capable PC shipments hit 13.3 million in the third quarter, according to new analysis from Canalys. (Informa is the parent company of both Canalys and Channel Futures.) This includes all desktops and notebooks that have an installed chip or block for dedicated AI workloads. Most of these devices (53%) were Windows PCs, which was a first in the market.

Expect Windows 11's expansion and processor advancements to help increase the adoption of the technology, although challenges still linger for most AI PC makers. Customers will continue to need to be convinced that AI PCs are necessary, Canalys argues, particularly as on-device AI functions evolve and develop.

Canalys' Ishan Dutt

“Progress along AI-capable PC road maps maintained a strong pace in Q3 2024,” said Ishan Dutt, principal analyst at Canalys. “Copilot+ PCs equipped with Snapdragon X series chips enjoyed their first full quarter of availability while AMD brought Ryzen AI 300 products to the market and Intel officially launched its Lunar Lake series. However, both x86 chipset vendors are still awaiting Copilot+ PC support for their offerings from Microsoft, which is expected to arrive this month.”  

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“Despite the positive momentum, significant work must still be done to convince both channel partners and end customers of the benefits of AI-capable PCs,” Dutt added. “This is especially true for more premium offerings such as Copilot+ PCs, which Microsoft requires to have at least 40 NPU TOPS alongside other hardware specifications.

AI PC Market Expected to Grow in 2025

Many partners are still skeptical that their customers will want this technology. In a recent poll, 31% of partners said they do not plan to sell Copilot PCs in 2025, while 34% expect minimal sales of AI PCs in the future.

End of support for Windows 10 in 2025, however, might change their minds.

"With the Windows 10 end-of-support now less than a year away, the coming quarters represent a critical opportunity to drive a significant portion of an aged installed based to be upgraded to an AI-capable PC," said Dutt.

Several major PC manufacturers like Lenovo and HPE are adapting to the "AI PC revolution," with the manufacturers incorporating the new technology into their latest models.