Dell Tech Forum 2024: AI NPUs boost PC future

Dell Technologies’ latest advancements in AI, among innovations like neural processing units (NPUs), were showcased at the Dell Tech Forum in Johannesburg last week. The annual event provides a platform for the technology giant to share insights into how its products are enhancing user experiences and promoting sustainability.

“I find this year as a revolution year for the PC industry,” said Haidi Nossair, senior director for Dell’s client solutions group, META, during a media roundtable discussion. “Every year it was an evolution, because all the processor companies brought updated the new gen. But this year, I consider it a revolution.”

Dell’s introduction of commercially available NPUs this year represented a shift from traditional CPU and GPU architectures, allowing for more efficient workload distribution. AI has become an essential component of computing, moving beyond traditional business intelligence to influence how organisations manage data and workflows.

Looking ahead, Dell intends to continue integrating NPUs more broadly across its product range, bringing advanced on-device AI capabilities for enhanced efficiency and responsiveness.

“It started from February – this is very, very exciting, and we’re only just starting. This entire thing is going to enhance productivity, and augment creativity.”

 _{Haidi Nossair, senior director for Dell’s client solutions group}

NPUs help manage AI-related tasks and collaboration tools, taking some of the processing load off CPUs and GPUs. This change enhances energy efficiency and extends battery life, reducing charging cycles and contributing to sustainability.

“With the NPU, that workflow is distributed while the CPU will continue to do the task that was meant to do years ago,” said Nossair. “Gen AI is accelerating innovation. It’s really the catalyst of innovation.”

With energy being a major concern across many African countries, the latest NPU developments offer a promising approach to improving energy consumption efficiency. “Energy consumption is reduced. We know batteries are one of the most harmful things from the e-waste perspective.”

Security is also a priority for Dell, as NPUs and AI improve threat detection and proactive responses. “AI helps the user or IT to get better security, you can identify misuse or any anomalies in the device much faster.”

Nischal Mohanlal, client solutions lead for Dell Technologies South Africa, told Gadget: “When you look at a heavy application on your device, for example, security, there’s about two or three security protocols running.”

He says that Intel, for example, is working with the independent software vendors network to evolve their application process to include more AI-based processing. “The more that happens across the spectrum, you would find that those apps will be running more efficiently and powerfully.”

Adoption and options

Adoption challenges remain, particularly for smaller organisations facing financial constraints. However, Dell offers a options to meet different budget and performance needs.

Nossair said: “We brought two new processor powers – one with Intel, one with Snapdragon – to offer all customers the range of whatever they would like to have access to based on their economics.

“These advancements will enable more sophisticated AI applications, leading to faster, more responsive user experiences and heightened energy efficiency. We are committed to ensuring that these advancements cater to all users, from enterprises to smaller organisations, making AI-powered productivity accessible.

“The capabilities move from productivity, creativity to really magnitude on the healthcare and how to improve the abilities of having better life, curing diseases.

* Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and writer for Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Twitter and Threads at @jas2bann.