How to choose AI-ready business laptops

Dell laptop being used by a person sat at a table outside a coffee shop — (Image credit: Getty Images)

TL;DR

AI-ready laptops can offer greater data privacy than cloud services, and may be faster when working with local data
When choosing an AI-ready laptop it’s important not to overlook all the other factors that workers need to be productive
AI capabilities can be provided by an efficient NPU or a more heavyweight GPU, with performance ratings expressed in TOPS
Anyone who works with data can benefit from local AI – even everyday office tasks can be enhanced with AI-assisted desktop features
Dell Pro 5 and 7 laptops combine on-device AI performance, strong security and role-specific designs, with professional-grade management and security

On-device AI is increasingly integral to business workflows – but in a fast-moving, hype-filled market it’s not obvious how to choose the right AI-ready business laptop.

One immediate thing to look for is Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC branding. This indicates a defined level of AI performance, delivered by onboard hardware that enables AI features to run quickly and securely on the device.

Business-focused laptop ranges such as Dell Pro offer a selection of AI-ready designs and configurations, to ensure that workers have all the resources they need to work effectively.

Do we need AI-ready laptops for our business?

There are good reasons to invest in AI-ready laptops. Local AI workflows can boost productivity by cutting the amount of time workers spend on tasks such as transcribing calls and analysing documents and data. They can also help with more complex jobs, such as large-scale data analysis and software development workflows.

These tasks could equally be done using cloud services, but local AI has the benefit that your data can remain on the user device. This affords greater protection of sensitive information, and can be faster because queries and data don’t need to be transmitted over a network.

Even if you’re not currently using on-device AI, an investment in AI-ready hardware gives you options for the future. And there’s no doubt that this is the way the wind’s blowing: a report by Grand View Research projects that the market for on-device AI will grow from $13.6bn in 2026 to $75.5bn by 2033.

Two Dell laptops next to each other, one closed, one open showing the display — (Image credit: Dell)

What do we need to look for when choosing AI-ready business laptops?

While your focus may be on AI capabilities, conventional factors such as battery life, display quality and portability mustn’t be overlooked. Different workers have different needs, and these won’t all be met by a single Copilot+ laptop model. A business-oriented laptop range, such as the Dell Pro 5 and 7 family of laptops, is designed to let you match formats and configurations to roles, and ensure that each individual gets what they need.

For example, collaborative and customer-facing roles may prioritise high-quality cameras and audio, long battery life, as found in the Dell Pro 7 range. Those with more demanding workloads will be better served by the large memory capacities and high-end AI performance available in the Dell Pro 5 series.

What AI capabilities do we need in a laptop?

An AI-ready laptop needs dedicated AI inferencing hardware. This often comes in the form of a neural processing unit (NPU) – a custom chip designed to handle everyday AI tasks in a quick, efficient and secure way. In some cases, GPU hardware is used instead of (or in addition to) an NPU. This may be less energy-efficient, but it can provide higher performance, making it suitable for complex data modelling and similar tasks.

The AI performance of a computer is often measured in TOPS (Trillions of Operations Per Second). A high TOPS rating isn’t necessary for lightweight jobs such as document processing, but it can be beneficial to intensive workloads.

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AI function	Example	TOPS requirement
Real-time transcription	Meeting notes	Low
Document analysis	Summarising reports	Low
Content generation	Promotional copy	Medium
Data analysis	Financial modelling	Medium/High
Code generation	Software development	High
Image generation	Data visualisation	High

Heavy AI tasks also benefit from fast storage and generous memory allocations, as available on Dell Pro 5 systems. If your goal in using local AI is to improve data protection, a hardware security framework such as Dell’s CV3+ architecture can help protect on-device data from unauthorised access.

Two Dell laptops, open showing the screen, positioned next to each other at an angle — (Image credit: Dell)

Which roles benefit most from AI-ready laptops?

Roles that work with large volumes of data benefit most from AI-ready laptops. For example, an administrator with a Copilot+ PC can use on-device AI to process and summarise a flow of incoming messages or regular reports. More intensive and development-focused roles may require more powerful hardware with a higher TOPS rating for acceptable performance.

Even workers who don’t require AI for their core tasks can take advantage of AI features to be more productive and make the most of their tools. For example, Windows 11’s live captions, AI-powered file search and on-device text generation and rewriting features rely on local AI hardware to run efficiently.

How do Dell Pro laptops support different AI business needs?

Dell Pro business laptops offer a wide range of designs, performance levels and mobile options, along with Copilot+ features for fast and secure local AI processing.

Thin and lightweight Dell Pro 7 models are ideal for travelling workers needing long battery life and portability, with high-end cameras and stylish looks that help create a professional impression. Powerful Dell Pro 5 options are suitable for office-based staff working with heavy data sets and complex graphical visualisations.

The Dell Pro platform’s unified management platform meanwhile enables IT departments to administer the whole fleet easily and consistently. And Dell’s CV3+ security framework provides centrally managed, hardware-assisted security to protect sensitive data if the laptop is compromised or stolen – without requiring users to worry about complicated security software or settings.

Dell laptop shown open, and also from the rear — (Image credit: Dell)

How can AI-ready laptops benefit our business today?

On-device AI can help your business by delivering fast, consistent AI services while keeping data safely on the user’s device. It also reduces reliance on cloud-based AI processing, and the associated costs.

When choosing hardware, though, remember though the laptop you pick will be someone’s full-time productivity station. Dell Pro 5 and 7 laptops offer the AI performance, security and role-specific design that workers need to be effective both in and out of AI tasks, along with the wider business benefits of a professional management and security platform.

If you think Dell laptops are the right call for your business, find out more on the Dell website.

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And there’s one more thing to know before you buy: Dell offers a price match guarantee. To learn more about the Dell price match and price guarantee, including the terms, exclusions and restrictions, US readers can click here, UK readers here, AU readers here and CA readers here.