More than 4% PC shipment growth predicted for 2025, but not for what you expect, says IDC

More advanced PCs that can do more than other PCs (and humans, too) might eventually translate to less hardware shipped, he noted. However, it will be a net positive. “There’s going to be a lot of revenue gains from that, from the software side, cloud side, everything else.”

Not so fast…

Still, Reith noted, the industry has gotten a little ahead of itself when it comes to AI PCs. While they someday will become the norm — all modern laptops and desktops, after all, contain some sort of AI — that’s more of a long-term trend.

This is notably because “budgets are constrained across the board,” said Reith. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a tech company, healthcare, whatever. When AI comes up, it’s, ‘Look, how much extra is that going to cost?’ It’s all about the dollar.”