On the 4th (local time), at the Innovation Stage at Messe Berlin in Berlin, Germany, where Europe's largest home appliance and information technology (IT) trade show, IFA 2026, opened. When Jack Huynh, senior vice president and general manager of AMD's Computing and Graphics Group, raised a laptop, applause broke out from the audience. Later in the presentation, when a workstation capable of running a large artificial intelligence (AI) model next to a desk was unveiled, the audience again erupted in applause and cheers.
The headliner for this year's IFA opening keynote was not a TV or home appliance maker but the semiconductor company AMD. Senior Vice President Huynh spoke for about 45 minutes on "The Era of Personal AI: The Future of Imagination." AMD's future blueprint is that the PC will shift from a tool that takes human commands to an AI partner that understands a user's context and intent and works alongside them.
◇ "AI is the new electricity"… how personal AI will change PCs
Senior Vice President Huynh said, "AI is the new electricity." He said, "A hundred years ago, electricity made it possible to use power anywhere and changed how we work, live, and move," adding, "If electricity gave the world power, AI gives it intelligence." He added, "AI doesn't just expand what computers can do; it broadens what we can do."
Huynh sees the next shift in computing, following PCs, the internet, and smartphones, happening with AI. He said, "PCs brought computing to the hands of millions, the internet brought the world's knowledge to our fingertips, and smartphones put computing in our pockets," adding, "Now AI is giving computing intelligence."
He said AI agents (autonomous assistants) will accelerate this change. While existing Generative AI stopped at answering questions, AI agents plan on their own, use tools, check results, and proceed to the next task. Huynh said, "One can research, one can write, one can code, and another can test," adding, "AI no longer just speeds up a single task; it multiplies the scope of what one person can accomplish."
Huynh also emphasized that AI is meaningful more for augmenting human capability than replacing people. "AI doesn't diminish human ambition; it gives ambition a lever," he said. He added, "The next great corporations could begin with one person, one computer, and a single idea big enough to change the world."
AMD's core pillars for personal AI are ▲ on-device local computing for AI ▲ privacy and user control ▲ personal context. AI understands schedules, files, and preferences, but sensitive information is processed on the PC while the cloud is used when more compute is needed. Huynh said, "Your data is yours, and you should decide what to share and where," adding, "The key change is that intelligence starts with you, not the cloud."
◇ A 300-billion-parameter model runs on a PC… MS and SUSE also take the stage
AMD also unveiled hardware to realize personal AI. Ryzen AI Halo supports up to 192GB of unified memory, enabling local operation of AI models with up to 300 billion parameters. It expands model capacity from the previous 128GB memory and up to 200 billion parameters.
Huynh also held up a next-generation HP ZBook equipped with Ryzen AI Halo. After a demo that generated a virtual world on a laptop with a single-sentence command, he said, "This is the future of personal AI."
In the latter part of the presentation, the "Threadripper Halo Station," designed by AMD, took the stage. Huynh introduced it as "the system closest to a personal supercomputer." It comes with two Instinct MI350P accelerators and can be expanded to four. With up to 2TB of system memory and 576GB of fifth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM), HBM3E, AMD says it can run AI models with more than 1 trillion parameters.
Pavan Davuluri, senior vice president and head of Windows and Devices at Microsoft (MS), also joined Huynh on stage to discuss the future of AI PCs. MS introduced "Project Zenith," which preconfigures developer tools and environments so large-scale AI models can be handled locally out of the box. Project Zenith will debut on Ryzen AI Halo.
Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen, chief executive officer (CEO) of open-source software company SUSE, also joined the stage. He emphasized the importance of an open ecosystem that lets users choose software and infrastructure while scaling AI developed on personal workstations to data centers, edge devices, and the cloud.
In the industry, it was seen as symbolic and unusual that a semiconductor company took the opening keynote at IFA, which has grown with a focus on home appliances and consumer electronics. As AI competition spreads beyond the functions of finished goods like refrigerators, TVs, and PCs to the computing platforms that power them, the scope IFA covers is also expanding.
A German attendee in their 30s we met on-site said, "I've come to see IFA for three years now, and I was intrigued that a semiconductor company was giving the keynote," adding, "I'm excited to see how AMD technology-based personal PCs evolve and how that changes everyday life."
Huynh said, "The most important question isn't what AI can do, but what you will do with AI," adding, "The greatest breakthroughs of this era haven't yet been imagined, and the next great invention hasn't yet been made." He continued, "Imagine what doesn't exist and build it. If you think you've hit the limit, imagine and dream bigger."