What Is a Copilot+ PC? (2026 Guide)

In short: "Copilot+ PC" is not a software edition you can buy or update into — it is a promise about the silicon inside. This guide explains exactly what qualifies, which chips make the cut, what the on-device features actually do, and whether a typical person needs one in 2026.

The hardware bar, exactly

Microsoft publishes the Copilot+ requirements alongside the standard Windows 11 specifications. On top of everything a normal Windows 11 PC needs (TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, a supported CPU and so on), a Copilot+ PC must meet these additional minimums:

The number that does the real work here is TOPS — "trillions of operations per second." It is a rough measure of how much AI math a chip can churn through. Microsoft drew the line at 40+ TOPS because that is roughly the throughput needed to run its on-device AI models responsively without hammering the battery. Plenty of older laptops shipped with small NPUs rated well below that figure; those are perfectly good PCs, but they are not Copilot+ PCs.

What is an NPU, and why does it matter?

Your PC already has a CPU (general-purpose brain) and usually a GPU (graphics and parallel work). An NPU is a third kind of processor built specifically for the repetitive matrix math behind modern AI. Because it is purpose-built, it can run AI tasks at lower power and less heat than doing the same work on the CPU or GPU — which is why Copilot+ laptops can run features like live background blur all day without wrecking battery life.

On a Copilot+ PC, Windows 11 hands the right job to the right chip: the CPU, GPU and NPU work together, and AI workloads that are optimised for the NPU run there. You can even watch it happen — on a device with an NPU, Task Manager shows an NPU column alongside CPU, GPU, memory and disk. Microsoft's Copilot+ PC developer guide confirms both points: Windows 11 assigns processing tasks to the most appropriate place, and Task Manager can now be used to view NPU resource usage.

How to check whether your PC already qualifies

1. Open Settings > System > About and note your processor model and installed RAM.
2. Open Task Manager (right-click the Start button, choose Task Manager) and select the Performance tab. If an NPU entry appears, your device has one.
3. Look in Settings for a dedicated Copilot+ area — on qualifying devices Windows surfaces Copilot+ features and settings that simply do not appear on non-qualifying hardware.
4. When in doubt, check the manufacturer's spec sheet or Microsoft's device listing for the phrase "Copilot+ PC." Marketing a machine as an "AI PC" is not the same guarantee.

The chips that qualify

Copilot+ started on Arm and quickly expanded to x86. As of 2026, Microsoft's specifications page names three silicon families whose NPUs clear the 40+ TOPS bar:

• Qualcomm Snapdragon X series (including Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus) — the Arm-based chips that launched the category, known for strong battery life.
• AMD Ryzen AI 300 and 400 series — AMD's x86 mobile processors for Copilot+ devices.
• Intel Core Ultra 200V and 300V series — Intel's x86 mobile processors that meet the bar.

The brand matters less than the specific model. Not every chip in these broader product lines necessarily hits 40+ TOPS, and older parts (for example, the first Intel Core Ultra "Series 1" chips) had smaller NPUs that fell short. Always confirm that the exact device is sold as a Copilot+ PC rather than assuming a family name guarantees it. To give a sense of scale, vendor figures put the Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus NPU at about 45 TOPS (Qualcomm), the Ryzen AI 300 series at up to about 50 TOPS (AMD), and the Core Ultra 200V (Lunar Lake) at roughly 47–48 TOPS (Intel).

What Copilot+ actually unlocks

Here's the payoff. Because these features run on the NPU, they're generally faster, more private (the processing happens locally) and gentler on battery than cloud round-trips. The headline on-device experiences include:

Recall

An opt-in feature that takes periodic snapshots of your screen so you can later find something you saw — a document, a website, an image — by searching in natural language. It is off by default and opt-in, snapshots are stored and encrypted locally, and you can pause it, exclude apps and websites, or delete snapshots. It requires Windows Hello sign-in to view your timeline. Microsoft's Recall support page states that saving snapshots is not enabled by default, that snapshots are saved and encrypted to your local hard drive, that Windows Hello confirms it is you each time you open Recall or change its settings, and that apps and websites can be filtered out under Settings > Privacy & security > Recall & snapshots.

Cocreator in Paint

Type a text prompt, sketch on the canvas, and Paint's Cocreator generates artwork on the device as you draw, blending your prompt and your strokes. Paint on Copilot+ PCs also gains other AI-assisted tools.

Live Captions with live translation

Windows can caption any audio playing on your PC — a call, a video, a podcast — and on a Copilot+ PC it can translate those captions in real time. Microsoft supports translating over 40 languages into English and 27 languages into Chinese (Simplified), all processed locally.

Windows Studio Effects

NPU-powered camera and microphone enhancements for video calls: automatic framing, eye-contact correction, background blur, portrait lighting, creative filters and voice focus. Because they run on the NPU, they work across whatever calling app you use without taxing the CPU.

Click to Do

A quick, on-screen assistant that recognises text and images anywhere on your display and offers relevant AI actions — copy or summarise text, act on an image, or jump straight to the app best suited to finish the task — without breaking your flow.

And more

Copilot+ PCs also gain touches like automatic super resolution for sharper upscaled content, and the list keeps growing as Microsoft ships new NPU-optimised experiences through Windows updates. The common thread is simple: these run on your machine, powered by that 40+ TOPS NPU.

Do you actually need one?

Honestly — most people don't need a Copilot+ PC today, and that's a fine thing to say out loud. Here's a straight read:

• You don't need one for Copilot itself. The Copilot assistant runs in the cloud and works on ordinary Windows 11 PCs, phones and browsers. A Copilot+ PC is only about the on-device features.
• Buy one if you want great battery life and you'll genuinely use the local AI features — live translation on calls, Windows Studio Effects for frequent video meetings, Recall for finding things you've seen, or on-device creative tools.
• Skip it if your current PC is fast, you're happy with cloud AI, or you rely on specialised hardware and software you haven't confirmed works on the platform you're considering.
• If you're buying new anyway, a Copilot+ PC is a sensible, future-facing choice — you get the NPU features as a bonus on top of a modern, efficient laptop. Just don't overpay chasing a badge you won't use.

Put differently: a Copilot+ PC is a capability, not a requirement. The features are real and useful to the right person, but Windows 11 remains fully functional — and Copilot chat fully available — on hardware that will never carry the label. If you're weighing a purchase, our Windows 11 Home vs Pro comparison and our guide to speeding up Windows 11 performance are good companions to this one.