Microsoft (MSFT) has unveiled a new artificial intelligence-enabled (AI) personal computer (PC) that is embedded with a desktop coding agent. The Seattle-based technology giant says that its AI coding model can run directly on the new personal computer, which contains security technology to prevent agents from accessing user data without permission.
Analysts were quick to praise Microsoft’s new AI computer, saying it poses a direct challenge to rival Apple’s (AAPL) efforts to bring more AI to its electronic devices such as the MacBook computer. Microsoft’s new computer is being powered by Nvidia’s (NVDA) microchips as it seeks to turn Windows into a platform for AI agents.
Microsoft’s key performance indicators. Source: TipRanks
Microsoft’s New AI Tools
People who use Microsoft’s new personal computer will be able to write code without having to access the cloud. The company also released “Microsoft Execution Containers,” a new tool to prevent AI agents from accessing data and doing unauthorized tasks when running on a laptop or desktop device.
“We needed to make the desktop the most secure place for agents to execute,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in showcasing the new computer. Consumers and businesses will be able to set rules for the AI agents, and Microsoft’s Windows operating system will enforce those rules on each machine, providing a layer of security.
Microsoft Windows on Steroids
Microsoft added that it is shifting some work that currently happens in its Azure cloud computing data centers to its new high-powered Windows computer that will be housed in businesses and homes, and where its customers will cover the hardware costs. Apple is taking a similar approach with its new AI-enabled Mac line of computers.
For Nvidia, breaking into the personal computer market could help it go after one of the last markets dominated by competitors such as Intel (INTC) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). Microsoft’s CEO Nadella was joined on stage by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to introduce the “Surface Laptop Ultra,” as the new machine is called. The new computer will have a starting cost of $2,599.00.
Is MSFT Stock a Buy?
Microsoft’s stock has a consensus Strong Buy rating among 37 Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on 35 Buy, one Hold, and one Sell recommendations issued in the last three months. The average MSFT price target of $558.86 implies 40% upside from current levels.
