Brand Retirement
Microsoft launched the Copilot+ brand in 2024 to differentiate its offerings with local AI capabilities from other devices that do not have NPUs or fail to meet the minimum 40+ TOPS requirement. But a little over two years after the launch and poor sales, the company has quietly moved away from the brand. Microsoft Surface CVP Brett Ostrum confirmed this to Windows Central in an interview on the sidelines of Snapdragon Summit 2026.
These devices do not carry the Copilot+ moniker, though they meet all the technical requirements of the previous performance bar. Even other hardware that would have been eligible under the branding, including upcoming systems and internal projects, are missing the badges. The company is also scaling back Copilot's presence in Windows 11 while promising to improve operating system performance, reliability, and updates, alongside optimizations to run on lower memory configurations amid RAM supply constraints.
AI Strategy Evolution
Despite dropping the hardware marketing label, Microsoft continues developing AI features for its product ecosystem. The company recently revamped Copilot with new software capabilities and tested features capable of running on discrete GPUs, potentially expanding advanced software tools to PCs without integrated NPUs.
While Microsoft did not provide a specific reason for retiring the brand, the widespread adoption of NPUs exceeding 40 TOPS across modern mainstream and high-end processors reduces the need for distinct hardware tiering. Furthermore, memory chip shortages have increased the cost of maintaining high baseline RAM requirements.
It remains to be seen whether retiring the hardware branding means all Windows 11 PCs will receive AI features previously restricted by the badge. However, the Copilot software brand is expected to remain integrated within Windows and other applications.
