Intel reveals details about Project Firefly and its efforts to create budget-friendly laptops aimed at competing with the MacBook Neo.

      Inexpensive laptops are finally receiving the upgrade they deserve!

      It’s well-known that the budget segment of the Windows market has been stagnant for years. While high-end devices continued to become thinner, lighter, and faster, the low-cost segment has remained stuck with technology that is five to seven years old, seeing only minor improvements.

      Intel seems eager to change this situation. In a recent interview on Talking Tech, the company shared details about Project Firefly, which aims to significantly revamp the budget laptop market by creating an entirely new ecosystem of laptops.

      What is Project Firefly all about?

      At the core of this project is Wildcat Lake, a chip that Intel has specifically designed for everyday users. It includes two P-cores for quick performance and four LP E-cores for extended battery life, along with a small NPU and appropriately sized graphics capable of handling smooth video playback and light gaming at 720p. Intel opted for a single-tile design and a less expensive six-layer motherboard to keep costs low.

      However, a chip alone isn’t enough to create a laptop, and this is where Firefly distinguishes itself. It’s a reference design program that provides laptop manufacturers with a ready-made blueprint that includes the ideal chassis, screen, and form factor. The prototype showcased by Intel measures only 12.9mm in thickness, has a durable metal body, and is available in a beautiful lavender shade that they refer to as their Intel color.

      Instead of utilizing the standard PC components, Intel drew inspiration from the smartphone industry, borrowing memory and audio chips from a much larger and more cost-effective ecosystem than that of PCs. It even packaged its chip and phone memory together into a single module that laptop manufacturers can easily integrate into their designs, which saves a considerable amount of time and effort.

      Can it compete with the MacBook Neo?

      Though Intel does not directly mention Apple’s budget MacBook, the company made it clear during the interview that Firefly is not a reaction to any specific competitor. However, Intel has openly acknowledged its admiration for what Apple has achieved and seeks to offer similar experiences to the widest range of users possible.

      While Intel won’t explicitly state it, the subtext is clear. The introduction of MacBook Neo has prompted Windows manufacturers to take the mainstream market more seriously, thus fulfilling its purpose.

      If Firefly succeeds, consumers won’t need to spend a premium to obtain a laptop that feels premium, which is a positive outcome for everyone.

      Rachit is an experienced tech journalist with over a decade of experience covering the consumer technology landscape.

      Your Windows 11 PC can now run AI workloads natively, even without the Copilot+ designation.

      For nearly a year, Microsoft has been suggesting that the future of AI on Windows is tied to Copilot+ PCs. If users wanted the most advanced local AI features from Microsoft, they required a machine equipped with a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU). That was the standard, but Microsoft seems to be changing the rules.

      Per updated documentation, Windows 11’s local Language Model APIs can now operate on non-Copilot+ PCs, provided they are equipped with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 30-series GPU (or newer) and at least 6GB of VRAM. Initially, this seems like a developer-focused update, but it could represent one of the most pivotal changes in Microsoft’s AI PC strategy since the launch of Copilot+ PCs last year. More importantly, it raises a long-standing question since the onset of the AI PC era: Did we actually need NPUs for this all along?

      The Windows 11 June update makes your Start menu and Search much more responsive.

      The Low Latency Profile is the first specific fix Microsoft has released for shell responsiveness, and the June update makes it available to all eligible PCs, not just those in the Insider preview.

      If you’ve ever clicked the Start button and had to wait a second or two for the menu to appear, you understand the issue Microsoft is attempting to address with the June 2026 update for Windows 11. The update (KB5094126) was rolled out on June 9, 2026, for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2, and targets the shell responsiveness problems that have quietly frustrated users since the OS’s launch in 2021. The main highlight of the update is the wide deployment of the Low Latency Profile.

      OpenAI partners with Visa to enable secure payments through AI agents.

      ChatGPT might soon be able to make purchases on your behalf thanks to OpenAI's new partnership with Visa.

      Imagine instructing ChatGPT to reorder your paper towels or find the best wireless headphones within your budget, and it just takes care of the purchase without you needing to lift a finger. That is precisely what OpenAI and Visa are working towards.

      The two companies announced a strategic alliance at the Visa Payments Forum, with plans to integrate Visa's global payment infrastructure directly into OpenAI's AI agent experiences, including