In June, Nvidia announced that it had secured agreements with Microsoft and several other PC manufacturers to develop AI- and agent-ready Windows PCs built around its RTX Spark chip, though specifics about the devices were limited at that time.
On Wednesday, during a Tech Week event in San Francisco, Microsoft unveiled the specifications and pricing for its new Surface Laptop Ultra. The base configuration starts at $2,600, while the higher-performance model begins at $3,700. Options for additional memory and storage are available, with prices reaching up to $5,900; the top-tier version is currently out of stock.
Microsoft also introduced the Surface RTX Spark Dev Box, a workstation powered by the RTX Spark chip, priced starting at $6,000. It includes Microsoft development tools such as VS Code, GitHub Copilot CLI, Windows Subsystem for Linux, and PowerShell 7.
Both the laptop and the workstation are engineered to run AI models locally on the device at no cost, leveraging the CPU, GPU, unified memory, and enhanced cooling solutions to support demanding workloads.
They ship with a refreshed Windows 11 that incorporates a new capability named Execution Containers, which simplifies the sandboxing of AI agents, according to the company. This feature will be made available to all Windows 11 users, as stated by CEO Satya Nadella at the event.
Nadella explained that over the past three to four years, simply possessing a model has limited utility; effective orchestration and external memory are required. He emphasized the need for a layer that can integrate multiple models, contextual information, memory, and actionable space.
He added that Microsoft is extending this capability not only to its own applications but also to any agent’s applications, underscoring the future direction of the Windows platform.
On the same day, Dell announced details for its previously unveiled XPS 16 Creator Edition, an Nvidia RTX Spark AI Windows PC. The system is now available for pre-order with an anticipated delivery in October, and is listed at $3,800 on Best Buy.
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