Amazon Music adds ads for Prime members, ad-free costs extra: Details here

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 2, 2026 | Technology

Amazon is changing the music experience for Prime members in India. The company has announced that Amazon Music, so far offered as complimentary bundle with with Prime, will now feature advertisements, while users who want ad-free listening, offline downloads and premium audio quality will need to subscribe to a new paid tier called Amazon Music Unlimited.

At the same time, Amazon has introduced a three-tier structure for its music streaming service. Alongside the new Music Unlimited subscription, Prime members will continue to get access to Amazon Music as part of their membership with ad-supported listening, while an upcoming Amazon Music Free tier will offer ad-supported access with limited features.

The move brings Amazon Music closer to the model used by several rival streaming platforms that differentiate between free, ad-supported and premium listening experiences.

What is Amazon Music Unlimited

Amazon Music Unlimited is the company’s new premium music streaming service aimed at users seeking higher audio quality and additional listening features.

The company said the service includes access to more than 100 million songs and podcasts, along with support for HD, Ultra HD and Spatial Audio formats, including Dolby Atmos. Amazon said these formats are designed to deliver a more immersive listening experience.

Subscribers also get ad-free playback and the ability to download music for offline listening.

What do Prime members get

Prime members will continue to have access to Amazon Music as part of their Prime subscription at no extra cost.

The service includes on-demand access to more than 100 million songs and podcasts. However, the Prime tier now includes advertisements and does not support offline downloads.

What is Amazon Music Free

Amazon has also announced a free tier called Amazon Music Free, which will launch in India soon.

According to the company, the service will provide access to Amazon Music’s full catalogue but will be supported by advertisements and come with limited features compared to the paid plans.

The launch will give users a way to access Amazon Music without paying for either Prime or Music Unlimited.

Pricing and free trials

Amazon Music Unlimited is available at two price points:

Rs 99 per month for Prime members

Rs 119 per month for non-Prime users

To attract new users, Amazon is offering free trials for both groups.

Prime members can try Music Unlimited free for six months, after which the subscription will renew at Rs 99 per month. Non-Prime users can access a three-month free trial, followed by a monthly fee of Rs 119.

Features:

Ad-free listening

HD, Ultra HD and Spatial Audio

Offline downloads

Full catalogue access

Amazon Music for Prime members

Price: Included with Prime membership

Features:

Full catalogue access

Ad-supported listening

No offline downloads

Amazon Music Free

Features:

Ad-supported listening

Limited features

Why is Amazon introducing more tiers?

The move brings Amazon Music closer to competitors that offer both free and premium listening options.

Instead of a single experience for all users, Amazon is now offering different levels of access based on features, audio quality and price.

For users who want the best audio quality and offline listening, Music Unlimited becomes the premium option. Prime members can continue using Amazon Music as part of their existing membership, while the upcoming free tier is aimed at users who want access to music without paying for a subscription.

How does it compare with rivals

Amazon’s move mirrors the approach taken by several major music streaming platforms.

Services such as Spotify and YouTube Music offer free, ad-supported listening while reserving features such as ad-free playback, offline downloads and higher-quality audio for paid subscribers.

Apple Music, meanwhile, operates solely as a paid service without a free ad-supported tier.

By introducing Music Unlimited and adding advertisements to the music experience included with Prime membership, Amazon appears to be aligning its music business more closely with the broader streaming industry model.

Source link

Meta eyes broader AI wearable push with new glasses; pendant in works too

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 2, 2026 | Technology

Meta is reportedly preparing to expand its artificial intelligence-powered wearable portfolio with multiple new products expected over the coming months. According to a report by The Information, the company is working on several new smart glasses, an AI-powered pendant, and a consumer AI assistant as it looks to move beyond its existing Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta products.

The reported roadmap includes four new smart glasses models alongside a broader strategy centred on AI-powered wearables and subscription-based services.

The developments come as competition in AI eyewear intensifies. Google recently showcased its Android XR-powered smart glasses platform at Google I/O 2026 and confirmed plans for both audio-focused and display-equipped glasses. Apple is also reportedly developing its own AI-powered smart glasses designed to rival Meta’s offerings.

Together, these moves suggest major technology companies increasingly view smart glasses and other AI-enabled wearables as a potential successor to some smartphone-based experiences.

Meta’s smart glasses plans reportedly extend far beyond Ray-Ban

Meta’s current wearable strategy largely revolves around its Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta smart glasses. These devices allow users to capture photos and videos, listen to music, attend calls and interact with Meta AI through voice commands.

However, according to The Information, the company is now preparing a much broader product lineup.

The report claims Meta is working on four new smart glasses models codenamed Modelo, Luna, RBM2 Refresh and Mojito VIP. Modelo could reportedly arrive as early as June, while Luna and RBM2 Refresh are expected in the autumn. Mojito VIP is said to be planned for a December launch.

At this stage, little is known about the devices themselves. RBM2 Refresh appears to be a successor to the existing Ray-Ban Meta lineup, while details about the remaining products remain limited.

Why is Meta investing heavily in smart glasses?

For Meta, smart glasses appear to be more than another hardware category.

The company has increasingly positioned smart glasses as a key part of its AI strategy. Unlike smartphones, smart glasses combine cameras, microphones and speakers, allowing users to access AI features without constantly looking at a screen.

The current Ray-Ban Meta glasses already reflect part of that vision. Users can ask Meta AI questions about objects they are looking at, request information, translate text and perform various tasks through voice commands.

Future devices could reportedly push those capabilities further by making AI interactions more continuous and context-aware.

Meta’s AI pendant

One of the products mentioned in the report is an AI-powered pendant.

The wearable is reportedly being developed following Meta’s acquisition of Limitless in 2025. Limitless was known for creating a device called Pendant, a clip-on microphone designed to continuously record conversations and generate transcripts, summaries and searchable memories.

At the time of the acquisition, Limitless chief executive Dan Siroker reportedly said AI-enabled wearables would play a key role in Meta’s vision of bringing personal superintelligence to users, according to Engadget.

If Meta adopts a similar approach, the AI pendant could function as a wearable memory assistant that listens throughout the day and helps users recall conversations, meetings, notes and other information later.

Unlike smart glasses, which combine visual and audio inputs, the pendant would reportedly focus primarily on audio interactions.

Meta’s new AI assistant strategy

The hardware reportedly forms part of a broader AI strategy.

According to the report, Meta is developing a consumer-focused AI assistant called Hatch. The company is also said to be working on a business offering called Wearables for Work.

The goal appears to be creating an ecosystem where AI-powered devices are linked to subscription services and cloud-based AI capabilities.

According to Engadget, Meta’s vice-president of wearables, Alex Himel, said in an internal memo that the company aims to expand adoption of its AI models while encouraging users to subscribe to premium services built around them.

The reported strategy suggests Meta is looking to pair its growing wearable portfolio with recurring AI-powered subscription offerings.

What are Meta’s ‘supersensing’ glasses?

Perhaps the most futuristic part of the report involves devices reportedly codenamed Artemis and SSG.

SSG reportedly stands for “supersensing glasses”. According to previous reports, these glasses could feature cameras capable of remaining active for extended periods, allowing AI systems to continuously understand and remember a user’s surroundings.

In practical terms, such devices could potentially remember where a user left an object, identify people they have met before, or provide information based on events that occurred earlier in the day.

According to a 9to5Google report, the concept resembles demonstrations shown under Meta’s Project Astra initiative, where AI systems analyse live visual information and respond in real time.

However, the supersensing concept would go further by allowing AI to maintain a more persistent understanding of a user’s environment.

While such products remain experimental, they offer a glimpse into how Meta believes AI assistants could evolve in the future.

As Meta expands, Google and Apple are close behind

Meta’s wearable push comes as rivals make similar moves.

The company said its first generation of AI glasses will focus on audio interactions through Gemini AI, while more advanced display-equipped glasses remain under development.

Apple is also reportedly working on smart glasses intended to compete directly with Meta’s Ray-Ban products.

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the glasses could feature cameras, microphones, speakers, Siri integration, navigation tools and media playback capabilities. However, Apple is reportedly delaying the product until late 2027 as it continues refining Siri and its visual AI technologies.

Source link

Asus unveils ROG Xbox Ally X20 handheld with OLED display; AR glass bundled

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 2, 2026 | Technology

Asus has unveiled the ROG XBOX Ally X20, a limited-edition gaming handheld built on the foundation of ROG XBOX Ally X, to mark the 20th anniversary of its Republic of Gamers brand. The device introduces several hardware upgrades over the regular Xbox Ally model, including a new 7.4-inch OLED display, TMR joysticks, and a redesigned D-pad. Asus is also bundling the handheld with the ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 Gaming Augmented Reality (AR) Glasses.

The company said the handheld is powered by AMD’s Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor and comes with 24GB LPDDR5X memory and 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe storage. The device features a translucent black chassis with gold-coloured internal accents as part of the anniversary edition design.

ROG XBOX Ally X20: Details

The ROG XBOX Ally X20 is the first Ally-series handheld to feature an OLED display. It sports a 7.4-inch Full HD ROG Nebula HDR panel of a 120Hz refresh rate, FreeSync Premium Pro support, Dolby Vision support, and a peak brightness of up to 1,400 nits. Asus said the display carries a VESA DisplayHDR 1000 certification and has a response time of 0.2ms.

According to the company, the handheld uses Corning DXC glass with an anti-reflective coating designed to reduce glare. Asus has also redesigned the cooling system to better manage heat around the OLED display and processor.

The handheld is powered by the AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor paired with 24GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 1TB of PCIe 4.0 NVMe storage. Asus said the device also supports Auto SR preview, a feature designed to upscale lower-resolution game frames for improved visual quality and smoother gameplay.

The company has also introduced several control upgrades. The handheld features new TMR joystick technology, which Asus says is designed to improve precision and reduce joystick drift. It also includes a Transforming D-pad that can switch between the standard four-way and the eight-way directional control, which is suitable for fighting games. Asus has additionally revised the face buttons and added a rubberised coating to the rear grips for improved handling during extended gaming sessions.

ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 Gaming AR Glasses

Asus is bundling the handheld with the ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 Gaming AR Glasses. The glasses use dual micro-OLED displays and are designed to function as an external display for the handheld. For the uninitiated, AR glasses are wearable devices that project digital information like text, 3D graphics, and video directly onto the user’s real-world view.

According to Asus, the glasses can project a virtual screen measuring up to 171-inch when viewed from a distance of four metres. They support a refresh rate of up to 240Hz and feature a response time of 0.01ms.

The glasses also support native 3DoF tracking, allowing the virtual screen to move along with the user’s head movements. Users can alternatively enable Anchor Mode, which keeps the screen fixed in a specific position while gaming or watching content.

The AR glasses connect directly to the handheld through a single USB Type-C cable and are integrated with Asus’ Command Center controls.

Availability

Asus announced the ROG XBOX Ally X20 Bundle on June 1 as part of ROG’s 20th anniversary celebrations. The company has not yet disclosed pricing or market availability details for the bundle. It also remains unclear whether the devices will be launched in India or not.

Competition from MSI

MSI recently showcased its upcoming handheld gaming console, the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+, at a hands-on event in Taiwan ahead of its reported June 23 launch. According to MSI, the device will be the first handheld powered by Intel’s Arc G3 Extreme processor and will feature an 8-inch display of a 120Hz refresh rate and variable refresh rate (VRR) support. For the uninitiated, Intel recently released the Arc G3 Extreme processor to take on AMD’s Ryzen Z-series chips used in devices like the Asus ROG Ally, and the new ROG XBOX Ally X20, making them direct rivals.

The company has also introduced full-screen Xbox mode, a controller-friendly full-screen Windows 11 interface designed to provide a more console-like gaming experience. The device will feature redesigned ergonomic controls, Hall-effect triggers and thumbsticks, a new vibration motor for improved haptics, and support for Intel technologies such as XeSS 3 and Multi-Frame Generation. The handheld is set to be offered in a Void Purple colour option. Similar to the ROG Xbox Ally X20, the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+’s availability or prices have also not yet been announced.

Source link

Scaling to stacking, chipmakers look beyond Moore's Law to boost computing

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 2, 2026 | Technology

You have likely heard that upcoming phones and laptops will move to 3nm or even 2nm chips. The assumption is straightforward: smaller transistors mean better performance and efficiency. For years, that has largely been true.

But that approach is now running into limits. As transistors shrink to just a few nanometres, problems such as heat, leakage, and manufacturing complexity begin to outweigh the gains. The cost of each new generation rises sharply, while improvements become harder to sustain.

This is forcing the semiconductor industry to rethink a basic question: if chips cannot keep getting smaller in the same way, how else can computing power be increased?

Why shrinking worked for so long

At the core of every chip are transistors, which act as tiny switches controlling the flow of electricity. Packing more transistors into a chip allows it to perform more operations at once, while smaller transistors also reduce the distance signals need to travel, improving speed and efficiency.

This is what made Moore’s Law possible. Each generation delivered more performance in roughly the same space, enabling steady progress in everything from smartphones to cloud computing.

However, as transistor sizes approach atomic scales, controlling their behaviour becomes more difficult. Electrical leakage increases, heat becomes harder to dissipate, and the precision required for manufacturing rises significantly.

At that point, simply shrinking transistors is no longer enough.

Different approaches to scaling beyond Moore’s Law

As traditional scaling slows, companies are exploring multiple directions rather than a single replacement.

One approach is to make chips significantly larger. Wafer-scale engines (WSE), used by companies like Cerebras, take an entire silicon wafer and turn it into a single processor. This avoids the need to connect multiple chips together, reducing data movement and latency. It is particularly suited for AI training, where massive amounts of data need to move quickly between compute units.

However, these systems are expensive, difficult to manufacture, and highly specialised. They are not designed for general-purpose computing or consumer devices.

Another approach is vertical stacking at the wafer level. TSMC’s wafer-on-wafer, or WoW, technology bonds entire wafers together, enabling dense vertical interconnects between layers. This improves bandwidth and reduces latency by shortening the distance data needs to travel, making it useful for compact, high-performance systems such as smartphones and laptops.

The drawback is manufacturing complexity. Because entire wafers are bonded, defects in one layer can affect the corresponding layer above. This makes yield management critical and limits flexibility.

A more modular version of stacking is used in Intel’s Foveros technology. Instead of bonding whole wafers, it stacks smaller dies or “chiplets” using vertical interconnects, often on top of a base die. This allows different components to be built on different process nodes and combined into a single package.

This improves flexibility and manufacturing efficiency, but it still relies on interconnects between separate dies. As a result, it cannot eliminate data movement bottlenecks in the same way as a fully integrated design.

The limitation of current 3D stacking

Across these approaches, a common constraint remains. Most existing 3D designs are built by stacking pre-fabricated layers. That means the connections between layers are added after manufacturing, which limits how tightly components can be integrated. Even in advanced designs, these vertical links are far less dense than the connections within a single layer of silicon.

This is where the next step in chip design is being explored.

A different kind of 3D chip

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have published a paper, which focuses on monolithic 3D integration, which takes a different approach to stacking.

Instead of bonding separate layers, circuits are built directly on top of each other, layer by layer. This allows much finer alignment between layers and significantly denser vertical connections, bringing them closer to the density seen within a single plane.

Until now, the main barrier has been temperature. Conventional silicon fabrication requires heat levels (up to 1000 degree celsius) that would damage previously built layers, making true multi-layer construction impractical.

The researchers address this by using ultra-thin silicon sheets, around 10 nanometres thick, which can be transferred and processed at temperatures below 200 degree celsius.

They also use junctionless transistors, which avoid high-temperature fabrication steps. This allows multiple layers of silicon circuits to be built without degrading earlier ones, while maintaining performance comparable to standard silicon devices.

In their demonstration, the team stacked three layers of circuits and achieved yields close to 100 per cent, indicating that the process can be reliable at small scales.

Where this could fit

Compared to existing approaches, monolithic 3D integration attempts to solve the main limitation of stacking: the quality of connections between layers.

If successful at scale, it could offer the density benefits of vertical stacking without the performance penalties associated with large interconnects. That makes it particularly relevant for workloads where data movement is a bottleneck, including AI and high-performance computing.

Source link

Meta's AI training tool for employees may spark new EU privacy concerns

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 1, 2026 | Technology

Meta is reportedly planning to collect detailed records of US employees’ computer usage to train its AI models, a move that could have broader privacy implications. According to a Reuters report, the initiative may draw the company into another privacy dispute in Europe.

The tool, called the Model Capability Initiative (MCI), is currently deployed on devices used by US-based employees and is intended to collect data on how people perform tasks across software applications.

However, Reuters reported that Meta has acknowledged the system could also capture communications involving employees outside the United States, including those in the European Union, potentially raising questions under the bloc’s strict data protection rules.

What is Meta’s AI training initiative about?

According to Reuters, Meta launched the Model Capability Initiative as part of a broader effort to develop AI agents capable of performing software tasks autonomously.

The company has reportedly told employees that the system collects information about how people interact with computers, including mouse movements, clicks, menu navigation and workflows across different applications.

Reuters reported that the tool tracks activity across more than 200 apps and websites. Meta said the objective is to understand how people use software so future AI agents can learn to perform similar tasks independently.

In a statement to Reuters, Meta said the tool is installed only on devices used by US employees and focuses on computer interactions rather than the content displayed on screens. The company added that it had assessed and mitigated privacy risks during the development and deployment of the system.

Who could be affected?

While Meta says the programme is targeted at US employees, Reuters reported that internal company documents suggest the scope may extend beyond them in certain situations.

According to an internal FAQ reviewed by Reuters, if a US-based employee with the tool enabled exchanges emails or chat messages with a colleague outside the US, that activity could also be captured by the system.

Reuters noted that this means communications involving EU-based employees may be recorded even if those employees are not directly participating in the programme.

The report also said Meta informed non-US employees that the tool had been deployed on the devices of their US-based colleagues and that communications exchanged during routine work could be affected.

Why could this create problems in Europe?

Reuters reported that privacy advocates believe the initiative could raise compliance questions under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), one of the world’s strictest privacy frameworks.

Under GDPR, organisations generally require a clear legal basis to process personal data, must disclose what information is collected and how it will be used, and are subject to strict rules when handling certain categories of information.

Privacy experts cited by Reuters argued that communications originally collected for workplace collaboration may not automatically be repurposed for AI training without further justification.

According to the report, Meta told employees that data collected through MCI would be dissociated from identifying information and therefore could not be searched or deleted for individual users.

Some privacy experts told Reuters that even limited or indirect capture of EU employee data could potentially conflict with GDPR requirements, which grant individuals rights over their personal data.

The report noted that Meta has informed Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, its lead regulator in the European Union, that neither EU employee data nor screen recording falls within the primary purpose of the initiative.

Employee concerns emerge

Beyond privacy concerns, Reuters reported that the initiative has also faced internal criticism from some employees.

According to the report, some workers claimed the tool consumed unusually large amounts of internet bandwidth, with a few reporting that it used significant portions of their monthly home internet data allowances within a short period.

Reuters said Meta declined to provide detailed information about the volume of data being collected.

The report also cited employee concerns about the scale of information being gathered. Some workers argued that analysing detailed computer usage patterns could enable Meta to build increasingly sophisticated AI systems capable of replicating aspects of knowledge-based work.

Meta disputed some of those characterisations, with a company spokesperson telling Reuters that certain employee claims about the tool’s capabilities were fundamentally inaccurate.

Why this matters

The initiative highlights how technology companies are increasingly seeking large datasets to train AI systems capable of performing complex workplace tasks.

Reuters reported that MCI forms part of Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg’s broader push towards AI agents that can automate software workflows and assist with digital work.

At the same time, the report suggests the project could become another test case for how AI development intersects with privacy regulation, particularly in Europe.

If regulators determine that communications involving EU employees are being collected or processed in ways that conflict with GDPR requirements, Meta could face additional scrutiny from European authorities.

For employees and users more broadly, the development underscores a growing debate across the technology industry about how much behavioural data can be collected to train increasingly capable AI systems, and where privacy regulators may draw the line.

Source link

Nvidia unveils RTX Spark superchip for AI-focused Windows PCs: Details

by Hansraj Agrawal | Jun 1, 2026 | Technology

Nvidia has unveiled RTX Spark, a superchip that it says is designed to power a new generation of Windows laptops and compact desktop PCs built for AI, gaming, and content creation. Announced at Computex 2026 trade show, RTX Spark is being positioned by the company as hardware for what it calls the era of personal AI agents, enabling advanced AI workloads to run directly on local devices.

According to Nvidia, the first RTX Spark-powered Windows PCs will be available this fall from manufacturers including Microsoft, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and MSI, with Acer and GIGABYTE expected to introduce devices later.

What is Nvidia RTX Spark

According to Nvidia, RTX Spark superchip combines a 20-core Nvidia Grace CPU with a Blackwell RTX GPU featuring 6,144 CUDA cores and fifth-generation Tensor Cores with FP4 precision. The CPU and GPU are connected using Nvidia’s NVLink-C2C chip-to-chip interconnect.

The company said the superchip can deliver up to 1 petaflop of AI performance and support up to 128GB of unified memory. Unlike conventional PCs where the processor and graphics chip typically access separate memory pools, unified memory allows both components to share the same memory resources, which Nvidia says can benefit AI, graphics and creator workloads.

Nvidia also revealed that MediaTek collaborated on the custom CPU design used in RTX Spark, contributing to its power efficiency, performance and connectivity capabilities.

What can RTX Spark do

Nvidia is positioning RTX Spark as a single system for AI development, content creation and gaming. According to the company, the superchip brings together technologies including CUDA, RTX, DLSS, TensorRT, OptiX, Reflex and G-SYNC in thin-and-light laptops and compact desktop PCs.

The company claims RTX Spark can run large language models with up to 120 billion parameters locally while supporting context windows of up to one million tokens. Nvidia said the hardware is designed to provide enough computing power and memory for increasingly capable AI workloads without relying entirely on cloud infrastructure.

For creators, Nvidia said RTX Spark can render 90GB-plus 3D scenes, edit 12K 4:2:2 video using Blackwell media engines, and generate 4K AI videos locally. The company also highlighted support for professional content creation applications and AI-assisted workflows.

On the gaming side, Nvidia claims RTX Spark systems will be capable of running AAA games at 1440p resolution and more than 100 frames per second using technologies such as ray tracing, DLSS and Reflex. Nvidia also announced DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction, which it says will improve image quality in ray-traced and path-traced games. The technology is expected to arrive in supported games and Blender 5.3 later this year.

Focus on AI agents

A major focus of Nvidia’s announcement is support for AI agents that can perform tasks directly on users’ devices. According to the company, RTX Spark has been designed to run AI agents locally while maintaining privacy and user control. To support this, Nvidia introduced OpenShell, a new runtime that helps developers build and deploy AI agents on Windows.

Nvidia said OpenShell allows users to define what agents can access, apply privacy policies, route requests between local and cloud-based AI models, and help protect personal information before data is sent to external services. The company added that developers behind projects such as Hermes Agent and OpenClaw are already integrating OpenShell into their Windows applications.

According to Nvidia, these agents could eventually help users perform tasks across Windows applications, automate workflows, search files, generate content and assist with software development while running directly on local hardware.

Software and app support

Nvidia said more than 1,000 RTX-enhanced and accelerated games and applications are already available across its ecosystem. The company also highlighted support from a wide range of software developers for RTX Spark-powered systems.

According to Nvidia, more than 100 software companies, including Adobe, Blackmagic Design, Blender, CapCut, ComfyUI and OTOY, are supporting the platform. The company said RTX Spark’s combination of AI performance and large unified memory is intended to benefit workloads such as video production, 3D rendering, AI image generation and local model inference.

Nvidia said Adobe is rearchitecting Photoshop and Premiere for RTX Spark, enabling the applications to make deeper use of the superchip’s Blackwell GPU, unified memory architecture and TensorRT software stack.

As per the chipmaker, the changes are expected to improve AI-powered editing, rendering, colour grading and graphics performance. Adobe also plans to extend Photoshop and Premiere with support for Windows-based AI agents that can assist users during creative workflows.

What Microsoft is adding

Alongside Nvidia’s announcement, Microsoft said it has worked closely with Nvidia to optimise Windows for RTX Spark-powered systems. According to Microsoft, RTX Spark devices will run Windows on Arm and include several platform-level optimisations for the new hardware. The company said it has tuned Windows scheduling to better distribute workloads across RTX Spark’s CPU architecture and implemented its Microsoft Power and Thermal Framework to improve performance and efficiency.

Microsoft also noted improvements for unified memory systems, including increasing the amount of system memory accessible to the GPU and enhancing memory management for demanding AI, creator and gaming workloads.

For compatibility, Microsoft confirmed that Prism, its emulator for running 32-bit and 64-bit x86 applications on Windows on Arm, will be available on RTX Spark systems. The company said Prism has been specifically tuned for RTX Spark and includes compatibility improvements introduced over the past year.

Microsoft further said RTX Spark systems will support Windows ML and native TensorRT integration, allowing developers to access Nvidia AI technologies directly through Windows.

The company also highlighted broad software support for Windows on Arm, including applications such as Blender, DaVinci Resolve, Maxon Cinema 4D, Maxon Redshift, Topaz Photo, CapCut, Cubase, Bitwig Studio, Affinity by Canva and MATLAB. Microsoft added that Photoshop and Premiere already run natively on Arm and are receiving additional optimisations through collaboration with Adobe and Nvidia.

Which devices will use RTX Spark

The first RTX Spark-powered devices are expected to launch this fall. Microsoft has already announced the Surface Laptop Ultra, a new Surface device aimed at creators, developers and professionals working with demanding AI and content creation workloads.

Other manufacturers including ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and MSI are also in pipeline to introduce RTX Spark-powered systems. According to Nvidia, these will include thin-and-light laptops as well as compact desktop PCs.

Nvidia said RTX Spark-powered laptops will be available in 14-inch to 16-inch sizes, with some designs being 14mm thick and weighing around three pounds. The company also said the devices will feature premium aluminium chassis designs and tandem OLED displays with G-SYNC support.

Source link

« Older Entries

Next Entries »

Times Top News

Times Top News