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ZDNET’s in-depth analysis reveals that Dell’s senior leadership is grappling with a wave of disappointment regarding the public’s reaction to the much-touted AI PC revolution. High-ranking company officials, including Dell’s head of product strategy, have voiced concern that the artificial intelligence capabilities built into these new machines are not resonating with the everyday user base. Many consumers appear more perplexed than impressed, uncertain about what tangible advantages these AI functionalities truly bring to their computing experience. Meanwhile, at Microsoft, CEO Satya Nadella has taken an unusually hands-on role, reportedly stepping into the functions of the company’s most influential product manager in an urgent effort to steer the Copilot initiative and its surrounding ecosystem back on course.
Microsoft’s current strategy aims to convince consumers to retire their long-serving Windows 10 devices in favor of purchasing sleek new machines dubbed Copilot PCs. These systems are designed to operate seamlessly with an upcoming generation of Windows 11 that aspires to become a fully integrated, AI-powered “agentic operating system.” However, one of Microsoft’s largest and most strategic partners, Dell Technologies, contends that the market has not yet embraced this ambition. Despite significant marketing and engineering investments intended to showcase the Copilot experience, user enthusiasm appears tepid at best—an outcome that suggests the promise of omnipresent AI computing still faces formidable skepticism.
At a press conference preceding CES 2026, Dell’s two most prominent executives bluntly challenged the assumption that consumers are clamoring for artificial intelligence capabilities in their personal computers. Jeff Clarke, the company’s Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer, opened the session by referencing what he termed the “unmet promise of AI.” He explained that Dell had initially envisioned AI as a major catalyst for renewed demand among end users. A year ago, the company’s planners anticipated a surge of interest in smarter, adaptive PCs, but real-world sales data has contradicted those forecasts, with the resulting adoption much slower than internal expectations.
During the subsequent question-and-answer session, Kevin Terwilliger, who oversees Dell’s product portfolio, elaborated on this sentiment, emphasizing that for the forthcoming 2026 lineup, the company has consciously reframed its messaging away from an “AI first” narrative. He acknowledged that this marks a notable evolution from the company’s earlier stance, when Dell enthusiastically described nearly every new model as an “AI PC.” Over the past year, however, accumulated insights from retail behavior and user feedback have painted a clear picture: household buyers are not choosing machines based on their AI credentials. On the contrary, for many potential customers, the inclusion of AI appears to generate confusion rather than clarity, making it harder for them to grasp concrete performance improvements or specific practical outcomes.
Although neither Clarke nor Terwilliger explicitly named Windows or Copilot in their remarks, the context unmistakably indicates a reference to Microsoft’s expanding suite of AI products and services. These tools, despite aggressive promotion, have yet to demonstrate meaningful advantages in typical home use or gain noticeable market traction when compared with alternative platforms. Competitors in the broader AI landscape—such as Google’s Gemini and Anthropic’s Claude—continue receiving industry accolades for capabilities like reasoning, language understanding, and programming assistance. Significantly, these offerings operate efficiently on existing hardware and do not demand the purchase of expensive, next-generation “AI PCs” to function at full strength.
The implications of this feedback from a key partner are not encouraging for Microsoft’s leadership. Satya Nadella, acutely aware of Microsoft’s historic missed opportunity during the transition from desktop computing to mobile and tablet ecosystems, understands that another platform shift slipping through the company’s grasp would represent a serious strategic setback. His determination to succeed this time fuels his deep personal involvement in Copilot development and deployment.
Recent reporting from The Information offers an unflattering glimpse into internal concerns at Microsoft. According to sources, Nadella has transformed himself into the firm’s unofficial chief product overseer, frequently scrutinizing progress updates and personally reviewing defects in the Copilot user experience. He has even sent annotated feedback directly to teams responsible for the consumer Copilot application, noting observed shortcomings and interface inconsistencies. The report stresses Nadella’s awareness of a growing perception that Microsoft’s version of Copilot is trailing advanced competitors such as Gemini, a situation that publicly undermines the company’s narrative of technological leadership.
This pattern echoes a familiar difficulty for Microsoft: a tendency to release products in incomplete form, then rely on progressive updates to achieve maturity. For smaller startups pioneering brand-new markets, this approach might foster innovation, allowing rapid user feedback loops. For a corporation of Microsoft’s massive scale and visibility, however, such an iterative rollout often backfires. Early users encounter rough edges, word spreads organically through reviews and social media, and a negative reputation can crystallize before substantial improvements arrive. Even after technical flaws are corrected, that initial skepticism persists, eroding trust and brand perception over time.
In parallel, Microsoft’s financial engine remains enterprise licensing, not consumer retail. The company’s most profitable deals involve bulk agreements with corporate clients purchasing tens or hundreds of thousands of user seats. Within that controlled environment, information technology administrators dictate what software runs across entire organizations. Still, even in those institutional settings, decision-makers may hesitate to authorize extra expenditures—such as an additional twenty dollars per user each month—if the supposed AI enhancements fail to yield clear operational advantages.
From a technical perspective, the integration of AI is now inevitable across modern hardware lines. Virtually all new machines from major original equipment manufacturers this year will qualify as “AI PCs,” incorporating chips like Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X or the latest Intel Core Ultra Series 3 and AMD Ryzen AI processors. These components feature sophisticated neural processing units explicitly optimized for artificial intelligence workloads. For buyers seeking to future-proof their purchases, such specifications provide reassurance that their systems will be ready when meaningful AI-driven use cases finally materialize in the coming years.
Yet the critical issue persists: Microsoft’s existing suite of Copilot services and associated AI functions are not fully equipped to exploit that hardware potential today. Until those features mature sufficiently to deliver transformative value to typical users, Dell and other Windows PC makers will find themselves returning to more traditional sales strategies—emphasizing durability, design, performance, and price—rather than relying on artificial intelligence as the headline appeal of their products.
Sourse: https://www.zdnet.com/article/ai-pcs-arent-selling-and-microsofts-pc-partners-are-scrambling/
