After attending the HP Amplify Partner Conference 2024 in Las Vegas for three days, my initial impressions changed significantly within the first 24 hours.
HP’s Amplify event is an annual showcase where the company presents its latest technologies and innovations, aiming to empower its partners and customers in the evolving digital landscape. It serves as a platform for HP to reveal its vision for the future of technology and its commitment to creating a more inclusive and sustainable world.
On the first day, I found the event somewhat underwhelming. The keynotes did not deliver major product announcements or groundbreaking insights. While HP’s leadership emphasized the company’s commitment to embracing AI, the details on how they planned to leverage this technology were sparse.
The event featured high-profile interviews with CEOs Pat Gelsinger of Intel, Cristiano Amon of Qualcomm, Satya Nadella of Microsoft, and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet, who discussed their companies’ AI strategies. However, these conversations did not provide much in the way of actionable information or specifics on their collaborative efforts with HP.
It was clear from the start that HP is making a significant push towards AI, but concrete details and actionable plans were not immediately apparent.
Then, the second day of the conference arrived.
HP’s Second Act
Day two of the event brought a fresh burst of excitement. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang took the stage, capturing the audience’s attention with his dynamic presentation on the potential of AI in conjunction with Nvidia-powered HP workstations. Huang highlighted how these systems can enhance efficiency in AI-driven content creation.
The event gained further momentum with a compelling presentation from HP’s President of Personal Systems, Alex Cho. Cho offered a passionate and insightful overview of this year’s Amplify, delivering what I found to be one of the most thorough and articulate discussions on the AI value proposition for business customers from a senior tech executive.
Cho unveiled a new lineup of AI-powered business laptops, desktops, and workstations, which he anticipates will invigorate the PC market. He introduced what he described as the most extensive collection of “AI PCs” to date, designed to support advanced generative AI tasks in a hybrid work environment. These new devices incorporate the latest AI processors from AMD, Intel, and Nvidia.
Cho emphasized that the AI revolution is not solely about raw performance metrics but rather about practical use cases, user needs, and experiences. He asserted that the impact of AI will go beyond technology itself, stating that HP aims to enhance global proficiency, productivity, and creativity.
Additionally, Cho highlighted several key developments for the year, with a particular focus on HP’s leadership in AI PCs and workstations. HP claimed that AMD-based mobile workstations offer 30% higher performance and better battery life compared to Intel-based models, which has led to more design wins. This is significant as large language models (LLMs), central to generative AI applications, are predominantly developed on high-performance desktops.
AI Studio Shakes Things Up
HP’s announcement of AI Studio drew significant attention. This new platform aims to bridge a major gap in the development of generative AI applications by offering a comprehensive solution for managing team roles and responsibilities. Generative AI projects typically require collaboration among multiple team members, and AI Studio addresses this need effectively.
Given the high costs associated with developing large language models (LLMs), which can run into hundreds of millions of dollars, AI Studio presents a potential solution for companies looking to reduce expenses and accelerate development. It promises to make LLM development more efficient and affordable.
Developing LLMs Is Costly and Complex
AI Studio stands out from other AI solutions by addressing some of the complexities involved in LLM development. Before HP’s announcement, only Nvidia and IBM offered “complete stack” solutions for such tasks. Nvidia, for example, has invested heavily in creating specialized workstations for AI development.
The intricate nature of LLMs requires advanced security measures and multi-user collaboration, which traditional software solutions often fail to manage effectively.
Although HP is relatively new to the AI space compared to established software experts, it has shown promise with its previous initiatives like HP Wolf Security and the HP Smart app, which have been well-received.
The collaboration between HP and Nvidia on AI Studio has resulted in a solution that effectively balances AI development and management tasks. The platform enables data engineers to concentrate on AI projects while handling administrative and reporting functions through the software.
Closing Thoughts
HP’s shift towards AI is strategic, particularly given industry predictions of a surge in PC upgrades in late 2024, driven by new AI PCs and a refresh of Windows 11. While many PC manufacturers are integrating AI to enhance their products, HP’s clear and precise messaging at Amplify sets it apart.
Alex Cho deserves recognition for presenting a strong case for AI in business PCs with clarity and enthusiasm, avoiding the vague claims that often characterize the AI marketing landscape.
The HP Amplify event primarily focused on business and corporate applications, with a detailed plan for engaging business customers with AI solutions. However, HP still has work to do in appealing to individual consumers.
While Microsoft’s Copilot in Windows 11 will likely play a major role in convincing consumers of the value of AI-equipped PCs, HP’s efforts are noteworthy.
In addition to the AI-related announcements, HP also introduced programs to support its channel partners with training and enhancements for the HP Poly lineup. A noteworthy Poly feature unveiled at Amplify addresses the common issue of “bowling alley” effects in videoconferencing.
HP VP of Design & Sustainability, Stacy Wolff, also delivered an impressive presentation on the company’s commitment to sustainable packaging, an aspect that often goes underappreciated despite HP’s significant role in the printer consumables industry.
Looking at the bigger picture, HP has managed to show that, despite its 76-year history, it can still innovate and adapt to new trends.
There is still work to be done in clearly communicating the specific advantages of local AI in PCs beyond just security and reduced latency. However, the HP Amplify event demonstrated that with time and patience, HP can effectively showcase its evolving capabilities.