Microsoft is really pushing the AI aspect of its new Copilot Plus PCs, but that completely misses the point. With these new ARM PCs, the x86 PC is finally dying.

We’ll get to the AI features in a moment, particularly the Recall feature, which the BBC calls a “privacy nightmare.” But the real reason to get excited about Microsoft’s announcement is that it’s finally getting serious about putting Windows on ARM-based chips. This is the same kind of system-on-a-chip that Apple uses to power its Apple Silicon Macs, iPads and iPhones, and is the reason those computers get insane amounts of power while sucking battery life dry. And it’s coming to PCs.

“Apple has some inherent advantages with their ecosystem (native iOS and macOS syncing of content, services and devices) and exceptional build and display quality, and so far much better battery life to weight ratios. But for the first time in a long time, I think Microsoft has a real opportunity to redefine what a portable computer can and should be,” Stefan Weitz, Microsoft veteran and co-founder of HumanX, told Lifewire via email.

PC makers have tried ARM-based chips before, but they haven’t really been able to beat the usual AMD/Intel x86 architecture in terms of performance. This is partly due to the less impressive chips available to PC makers, but also to Microsoft’s slow adoption of the new hardware platform.