While companies such as Microsoft or Google are adding AI capabilities to more and more of their products and services, it seems that not all customers do share the excitement that these companies try to convey.
Do customers want these AI features or care about them? It is certainly too early to conclude how this will all play out. Do companies spend billions on AI research, infrastructure and products that they will never recoup because the audience is not big enough?
Dell admitted something interesting in an interview with PC Games recently during CES 2026. The company revealed that it moved away from putting AI PCs front and center in marketing stating that the message that it tried to deliver with its products instead was “not AI first”.
Dell realized that consumers were, by large, not really interested in AI PCs. They were interested in PCs, but whether these were equipped with NPUs and capable of running AI operations locally or not, was apparently not something that the majority of Dell customers prioritized.
We’re very focused on delivering upon the AI capabilities of a device—in fact everything that we’re announcing has an NPU in it—but what we’ve learned over the course of this year, especially from a consumer perspective, is they’re not buying based on AI,” Terwilliger says bluntly. “In fact I think AI probably confuses them more than it helps them understand a specific outcome.
While all recent Dell devices come with NPUs and AI PC capabilities, the company is not focusing its marketing efforts on that.
It seems likely that other PC manufacturers are experiencing the same. While none has come forward that openly yet, there seems to be a clear divider between the interests of companies that push AI and the people that buy PC products with AI capabilities.
Most AI features that Microsoft introduced in Windows 11 do not appear overly useful to the majority of Windows users. Many mimic features that every AI chat on the Internet supports. This could change the moment Microsoft introduces something truly useful, like an AI that reacts to support requests by fixing the issues automatically. Whether something like this is coming this year remains to be seen.
For now, expect to be continued to be bombarded with AI announcements and integrations in products and services. Whether this are truly useful, annoying or even obnoxious is up for every user to decide.
Being interested, motivated by a device’s AI capabilities is one thing, close to neutrality at this point, AI capabilities (especially forced, arguably opt-out) being a veto to the acquisition of a new device is another. In the latter case the idea is to not believe that a device not explicitly stating ‘AI Inside’ would mean is is free of AI.
“Dell realized that consumers were, by large, not really interested in AI PCs”. Interesting. We all know that an anti-AI approach concerns many of us but personally I ignored until now if were were a majority or not.
As it goes, maybe a ‘No inside generative AI’ will be the way to sell because the way to buy for many of us. Yet, generative AI seems to be an infernal machine and, given major corporations commitment parented to force-feeding as it seems, I’d be surprised that a public’s majority claim ever slow down the eagerness of those who have invested billions together with conviction they are on the track of digital progress.
AI, yes, generative, no, as far as i’m concerned.
I am “not buying based on AI.” Furthest thing from my mind when purchasing–especially a laptop. At this point, I am thinking a 16″ laptop, with plenty of USB ports, not Thunderbolt C [despite speed benefits], and more ports like the Latitude I’m working with–media card, HDMI, speaker, RJ45, and a C port; a moderate display 2048x; Intel 7 or 9; 16GB RAM or more, not soldered in; keyboard backlit; battery life of 18 or more hours, etc. In truth, I’m not even thinking about it because what I am using has more benefits than a $1700 new laptop. They don’t build them like they used to.
AI–access to AI is ubiquitous on the Internet already–don’t need it/want it baked into the computer.
They may want to hide or downplay the abilities which are built in to the software but what Dell and other hardware manufacturers are newly doing is adding an “AI key” to laptop keyboards. It seems to be replacing the lower right control or alt key but there it is. Haven’t had the need to remap one yet but for now, they take you to copilot. So the AI infestation is well underway.
If it could actually do anything usefull I might think about it.
“Hey PC, open my email” (thunderbird opens) “What new messages do i have?” (It starts reading off subjects of emails recived since we lasts checked) “stop, who’s the one about {subject} from?” (it tells me the sender}
And I’d want to customize it’s personality, voice, and gender as well as have it all run locally and not send every single tiny detail of my life to someone else.
“And I’d want to customize it’s personality, voice, and gender as well as have it all run locally and not send every single tiny detail of my life to someone else.”
This probably takes a lot of resources that average PC will not be able to handle. Standard hardcoded TTS is simple and have been done for a long time on Windows, but human like AI voice is resource hungry.
True but, perhaps more people would be motivated enough to purchase high end hardware with built in NPU’s if it could actually provide this kind of interactive usefulness while keeping it private.
I just heard interestingly that Microsoft Corporate Clients/Governments will be able to disable Copilot and Recall on Administrative level. This feature is going to be introduced in new Windows alpha or beta channel update. I guess Microsoft got real push back from big businesses and governments. Let’s see if Microsoft is going pullback or double down on consumer level.
I would be all in on optional AI. Give us two versions of Windows. One is without AI for entry level and mid-range PCs and optional private pay monthly or yearly for high end PCs. I just do not know if Microsoft is up to the wall right now to give it to us.