Personal computers have become, it seems, rather boring. Every few months, PC vendors launch new line-ups, but the upgrades are often too minor to warrant consumers’ attention or spending. While companies market these features as innovations, much of the technology can feel forced rather than genuinely exciting or new. The same trend is visible in smartphones, with both categories now appearing increasingly mature.This week, however, HP, the oldest computer maker in Silicon Valley, is trying to revive PCs with the help of artificial intelligence by introducing an AI companion that is very different from Microsoft’s Copilot or OpenAI’s ChatGPT. HP IQ, in a true sense, is a new type of AI interface that could give Windows PCs a much needed rebirth.Ex-iPhone UI designer behind the IQ AI chatbot At the Imagine event in New York, HP unveiled IQ for the first time, a new on-device intelligence layer designed to run directly on PCs, but not on all devices. It is targeted specifically at enterprise and business computers, including the EliteBook series.The mastermind behind IQ is Imran Chaudhri, SVP of Design & Technology at HP IQ Lab, who was one of six designers responsible for the iPhone’s interface. Chaudhri and his partner, Bethany Bongiorno, left Apple to start their own company, Humane, which was acquired by HP in 2025. HP IQ doesn’t require an internet connection to run. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/ The Indian Express)Humane received significant global attention a few years ago when it attempted to launch screen-less personal computing with the Humane AI Pin, which was both a commercial and a critical failure.Like the Humane AI Pin, which promised “ambient computing”, an artificial intelligence-driven experience that is personal and contextual, the foundation of IQ is largely the same. In fact, it builds on Humane’s CosmOS, the operating system originally developed for the AI Pin.HP IQ is an AI assistant But is it an AI chatbot, or something more complex? There are already plenty of AI chatbots on the market. However, HP IQ is essentially an AI assistant, but designed differently.Story continues below this adAlso Read | HP unveils IQ as on-device AI, high-performance PCs to help accelerate enterprise AI adoptionWhen asked about the difference between the AI chatbot and HP IQ, Matt Brown, head of product for HP IQ, told indianexpress.com, “Sure, both will coexist. We are really focused on providing, first of all, something that’s local and secure on the device. Secondly, something people get with their AI PC so they have a starting point.”Perhaps the biggest difference between the AI chatbot and HP IQ is that the latter doesn’t require an internet connection to run. All your sensitive prompts stay on the device and aren’t sent to the cloud for processing, a key concern for enterprises and businesses wary of using AI chatbots like ChatGPT, which rely heavily on the cloud.Asked why HP brought IQ to enterprise PCs instead of consumer PCs, Brown said, “I think we really believe in the ability of AI to transform how work gets done. We see a big opportunity, and while we are looking to expand to other areas, starting in the office with enterprise is really critical for our customers.” HP IQ will be available in spring on EliteBooks, ProBooks, Zbooks, and Poly devices. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/The Indian Express)The best way to define HP IQ is this: it allows users to ask questions, summarise documents, identify tasks, optimise PC settings, and get answers about their HP products. HP IQ runs the GPT-OSS 20B AI model, launched by OpenAI late last year. To be clear, this is not built as a “reasoning” model capable of agentic work like OpenAI’s OpenChat or similar systems.Story continues below this adIn a demo, Brown uploaded a sensitive quarterly earnings statement to a PC and then asked the IQ bot, based on OpenAI’s GPT-OSS-20B, to analyse it. He then asked the IQ bot to help him with the revenue goal for the next quarter. In a matter of seconds, the IQ bot responded with the exact information requested. Since this is a deep-thinking model, when the executive asked, “What are typical questions analysts might ask?” the IQ bot analysed the entire document and generated five questions with context in real time.In another demo, Brown asked IQ to create a job posting based on a resume. You can ask it questions, both written and spoken, and since IQ understands multiple languages, the executive asked it to translate the resume into another language.The executive then showed the NearSense feature, which currently offers two main features but will offer more in the future. First, it can show you a list of coworkers in the same room as you and let you send them files by drag-and-drop, similar to Apple’s AirDrop feature. NearSense can also log you into meetings or start a meeting on the HP Poly conferencing hardware that’s in the same room as you.The IQ interface is simple and easy to navigate, which is where Chaudhri’s and his team’s expertise comes in handy. In the centre is the main interaction point, where you can ask questions. On the left side is the Notes Agent, which displays your recent notes. On the right is the NearSense button, which lets you interact with nearby coworkers or other devices.Story continues below this ad“We wanted something that’s there when you need it but out of the way when you don’t. It is easy to evoke IQ on top. The UI gives you a simple place to interact with, and when you need to expand it, it’s as simple as a drag or a click. It lets you quickly perform an action and then push it back out of the way,” Brown said.“We also have contextual windows that will pop up. For example, when you walk into a room and have a scheduled meeting, we will prompt you and ask, ‘Hey, do you want to start the meeting?’”IQ acts as a layer between devices and AIThe main reason HP developed its own AI assistant is to control the overall user experience, ensuring it works seamlessly across both hardware and software. Matt Brown, HP IQ product manager, during the demonstration of IQ with select media in New York. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/The Indian Express)“With IQ, we are trying to bring it to all the different devices that you also use throughout the office. We are thinking conference rooms, printers, and headsets. We want to use IQ to create more intelligent experiences across your workflow, not just when you are in a single chat instance,” Brown said.Story continues below this adThink of it this way. If an organisation buys all its devices and equipment from HP, IQ adds a layer between devices and AI while also keeping data private, since it runs directly on the devices.HP has had an AI companion before, but it was very chatbot-like. IQ is also a chatbot on your PC, but it is unlike what Microsoft did with Windows 11 or how OpenAI’s ChatGPT behaves on a PC.“We wanted to create a user experience that works around the user’s workflow, instead of just giving them discrete windows to click into. We believe that’s how AI workflows will continue to evolve. They need to be context-based and work around the tasks you are doing, rather than just providing separate windows.”Also Read | HP refreshes EliteBook laptop lineup with AI-centric X G2 seriesHP IQ’s early access program requires a 2026 EliteBook or ProBook “AI PC” with at least 24 GB of RAM. The company plans to expand compatibility to other HP notebooks, desktops, and Poly Studio Video Bars by summer, with additional devices launching later in the year. HP also intends to make IQ work on Android devices, allowing local file sharing and conferencing on millions of phones.Story continues below this adWast sets IQ apart from other Windows PCsThe big question isn’t whether HP IQ is innovative. For the longest time, PC vendors have been stuck with the Windows-based user interface. In fact, insiders say Microsoft has struggled with Windows 11, and its recent AI additions over the past few months have backfired. Imran Chaudhri, a former Apple designer and co-founder of Humane, heads HP IQ labs. (Image credit: Anuj Bhatia/The Indian Express)For PC vendors such as HP, there is limited opportunity to innovate on top of Windows, as Microsoft controls the pipeline for feature rollouts. However, HP IQ gives the company greater control over the device, as it is layered on top of the interface and works only on HP devices. The potential could be significant if HP opens NearSense’s capabilities to third-party devices.With partnerships with Google and Qualcomm to bring Android devices into the ecosystem, HP plans to integrate IQ with Google’s Device-to-Device Infrastructure (D2DI) and expand it across other ecosystems as well.If we dig deeper, HP’s approach with IQ mirrors Apple’s, controlling the narrative and offering a cohesive experience.Story continues below this adOn some level, HP IQ is a breath of fresh air, but the truth is that it is currently aimed at business PCs, not consumer PCs. That might change, but there is no guarantee. Another question is how well IQ will perform in the long run, since it relies on a relatively small-scale 20-billion-parameter model running on-device. Not to be forgotten, competitors can now match state-of-the-art systems in weeks, raising concerns about knowledge distillation and shrinking advantages.“We are starting with this model across the board, but you will see different performance based on the configuration of the PC. If you run this on one of our workstations, you can expect a fast response, but we are designing it to run across a wide range of configurations for AI PCs,” said Brown.