A 4-Core CPU That’s Fully Optimized for Microsoft’s AI-Powered Windows 11
Back at CES 2023, AMD gave the world its first look at Ryzen AI , a new direction for the company’s future processors. The technology made its debut with the 7040 series mobile APUs , based on the Zen 4 architecture . While it was an exciting step forward, being a first-generation product meant some limitations — particularly in AI performance, where the NPU (Neural Processing Unit) offered up to 10 TOPS (trillion operations per second).
By December of that same year, AMD introduced the 8040 series , which kept the Zen 4 CPU cores but brought major improvements to the AI side of things. Total compute performance jumped to 39 TOPS , with the NPU itself seeing a 60% increase , now reaching 16 TOPS .
Still, this wasn’t quite enough to meet Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC standard , which requires devices to deliver more than 40 TOPS of dedicated NPU performance . These specs are part of Microsoft’s push toward next-gen computing with Windows 11 24H2 , focusing heavily on local AI processing for features like Microsoft Copilot .
A New Era: Ryzen AI 300 Series and XDNA 2
At Computex 2024 , AMD unveiled its new Ryzen AI 300 series APUs , marking a shift in naming from the previous “x000” format to a cleaner “x00” system. With these chips came a full generational leap:
- Zen 5 CPU architecture
- RDNA 3.5 integrated graphics
- And most importantly for AI performance, the new XDNA 2-based NPU
This upgrade pushed onboard AI performance far beyond what was previously possible.
The Entry-Level Powerhouse: Ryzen AI 5 330
Previously, the Ryzen AI 5 340 was the entry-level chip in the lineup. But now, AMD has launched an even more affordable option: the Ryzen AI 5 330 .
What makes this new APU special is that despite being a quad-core processor , it still meets and exceeds Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC requirements thanks to its powerful dedicated NPU .
According to AMD:
“The new AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 processor is designed to offer incredible everyday compute experiences in mainstream and affordable Copilot+ PCs. With 50 NPU TOPS , notebooks powered by AMD Ryzen AI 5 330 exceed Microsoft’s requirements for Copilot+ PCs, offering true next-gen AI experiences built for Windows 11.”
Major OEMs like Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and MSI are already preparing systems based on this new chip, expected to arrive in the coming months.
Performance Specs of the Ryzen AI 5 330
While the chip targets affordability, it doesn’t compromise much on AI capabilities. Here’s a quick look at its key specs:
- CPU : 4 cores (Zen 5), boost clock up to 4.5 GHz , base at 2.0 GHz
- TDP : Configurable between 15W and 28W
- GPU : Integrated RDNA 3.5 graphics with 2 Compute Units (CUs)
- NPU : 50 TOPS — more than enough for Windows 11 AI workloads
