Microsoft hopes to push its HoloLens AI chip into other devices

Microsoft hopes to take a dedicated AI chip that it's building into the next generation of its HoloLens augmented-reality headset and push it into other hardware, presumably PCs and devices built by other countries. Speaking to CNBC, Microsoft's device chief Panos Panay said the company continues to work on an AI chipset for the next generation of the HoloLens, which so far has been sold primarily to commercial partners. According to Panay, Microsoft is poised to expand sales of the HoloLens from 10 markets to a total of 39, adding 29 new markets across Western Europe. Microsoft disclosed that it was building the new AI chipset in July, though it was unclear what functions the chipset would handle. Microsoft said then that the more traditional approaches used in the original HoloLens and other devices enhanced existing cloud computing fabrics, but that it was seeking to develop a more independent chip that could be used either online or offline.