At the start of 2024, I was pretty excited about Microsoft making the coming year its big AI breakthrough. Sure enough, Microsoft went hard on adding AI tools to all of its products with its Copilot rollout. However, the more these AI features rolled out, the less impressed I was by them. Now, as we're approaching 2025, I am thoroughly sick to death about hearing about anything AI, and I feel everyone else is, too.

But here's the funny thing; if you asked me what the most exciting thing about Windows was in 2024, I'd point squarely at Windows on Arm. While the operating system lacked support for years, it got a boost after Microsoft adopted the Snapdragon chip for its AI-powered Copilot+ project. So, here's why the Windows on Arm scene is more exciting to me than actual Windows.

Copilot+ PCs are good for their hardware, not Copilot+

Don't buy them for the AI - buy them for their Snapdragon chips

So let's crack open those Copilot+ computers, the big AI push for Microsoft. To help them perform AI processes locally, Copilot+ computers use Arm processors in them. Ideally, Microsoft would really like it if you purchased a Copilot+ PC for, you know...Copilot+. The problem is, buying a Copilot+ device for the digital assistant is a pretty bad move.

Why? Well, right now, the Copilot+ features feel very weak. There's nothing on there that really brings the "wow" factor and makes me want to use it in my everyday life. Copilot+'s keystone feature was meant to be Recall, but the feature hit some privacy concerns and ended up getting delayed twice. At the time of writing, Recall isn't even in the public testing phase, and we're a good few months past the release date of Copilot+ when the feature was meant to debut.

Do you know what a Copilot+ device is good for? The Snapdragon chip. If you want to experience Windows on Arm, picking up a Copilot+ PC is a great way to do that. Just treat the Copilot+ integration as bloatware and you're set to go.

Windows on Arm keeps seeing successes, while Windows is...just there

Not much reason to get excited over Windows

2024 was a fantastic year for Windows on Arm. See, for an Arm-based device to really shine, it needs special support so that people's apps use the hardware properly. This was a bit of an issue for Windows on Arm in the past, because if software companies don't support the architecture, then you're not going to see improvements.

However, this year we saw an influx of apps getting native versions for Arm devices, including a ton of popular browsers and productivity apps. Just the other day, we saw better emulation tools hit the Canary branch, which will make it a lot easier for developers to ensure their apps work with the Arm architecture. Not a month goes by where we don't see a new app get a Windows on Arm compatible version, or new advancements in how developers can code apps for Arm.

But hey, Windows also had its moment! How about that new Windows 11 24H2 update? We had, uh...Wi-Fi 7 compatibility. I mean, that's pretty good. Microsoft messed with the Start menu again, and then...more AI features. More Copilot stuff. Notepad has AI now. Yeah, that Notepad - Microsoft took a 40-year-old app and stuffed AI into it. Cool, I suppose.

We just really need Qualcomm and Arm to stop fighting

They're onto something big, and they can't afford to lose it now

So, what's stopping Qualcomm and Arm from totally dominating the scene? Well, right now, it's Qualcomm and Arm. The pair are in a feud right now, and if it continues, nobody will come out as a winner, especially Windows on Arm.

The thing is, there's a good chance that the companies won't actually split up over this fight. After all, they work best as partners instead of rivals. But this spat still puts a wrench in things, and I hope the companies get back to business sooner rather than later.

Windows on Arm has my interest

While Microsoft is busy rolling out more AI tools that people don't want to Windows 11, its Arm division are doing some really exciting stuff. Hopefully, Windows on Arm machines will be less of a niche and more of a standard as we move forward - that is, if Qualcomm and Arm can get back together already.