The Arm app ecosystem for Copilot+ PCs is no longer a niche experiment — it is now a mainstream platform strategy backed by Microsoft’s App Assure and Arm Advisory Service, hardware partners shipping NPUs capable of more than 40 trillion operations per second (TOPS), and a growing catalogue of native Arm apps that cover the apps people actually use every day. This shift matters because it changes the calculus for IT shops planning device refreshes, for independent software vendors (ISVs) deciding where to invest engineering resources, and for everyday users who care about battery life, performance, and the practical availability of their essential tools. (microsoft.com)
The Copilot+ PC initiative repositions the PC as an AI-first endpoint. Microsoft and OEM partners define Copilot+ PCs as devices that combine high-efficiency Arm-based NPUs, or equivalent NPUs from AMD and Intel, with Windows 11 and a set of on-device AI features branded under Copilot. The NPU capability that Microsoft repeatedly highlights is “40+ TOPS” — an NPU performance figure meant to indicate serious on-device inferencing ability for small language models, image generation, video effects, and low-latency AI features that run without round trips to the cloud. (microsoft.com)
At the same time, Microsoft is making a platform play: invest in app compatibility, encourage native Arm builds, and provide remediation and advisory resources to accelerate ISV porting. The headline metric Microsoft now promotes is that native Arm versions are available for apps representing roughly 90% of total user minutes on Windows on Arm devices — a usage-weighted view designed to show the practical coverage of the ecosystem, not raw counts of every legacy utility. That framing shifts the conversation from “how many apps are Arm-native?” to “do the apps people actually use run natively?” — an important distinction for adoption. (blogs.windows.com)
The Arm app ecosystem is now enterprise-capable in many common scenarios, but careful pilot testing and a disciplined rollout remain essential. The promise is real: better battery life, competitive performance on AI tasks, and a widening catalog of apps — provided organizations match vendor claims to their real-world workloads and remain mindful of gaps that still require vendor action or native builds. (microsoft.com)
Source: Windows Blog Empowering the future: The expanding Arm app ecosystem for Copilot+ PCs
Background
The Copilot+ PC initiative repositions the PC as an AI-first endpoint. Microsoft and OEM partners define Copilot+ PCs as devices that combine high-efficiency Arm-based NPUs, or equivalent NPUs from AMD and Intel, with Windows 11 and a set of on-device AI features branded under Copilot. The NPU capability that Microsoft repeatedly highlights is “40+ TOPS” — an NPU performance figure meant to indicate serious on-device inferencing ability for small language models, image generation, video effects, and low-latency AI features that run without round trips to the cloud. (microsoft.com)At the same time, Microsoft is making a platform play: invest in app compatibility, encourage native Arm builds, and provide remediation and advisory resources to accelerate ISV porting. The headline metric Microsoft now promotes is that native Arm versions are available for apps representing roughly 90% of total user minutes on Windows on Arm devices — a usage-weighted view designed to show the practical coverage of the ecosystem, not raw counts of every legacy utility. That framing shifts the conversation from “how many apps are Arm-native?” to “do the apps people actually use run natively?” — an important distinction for adoption. (blogs.windows.com)
What’s new: the expanding Arm app ecosystem
Broad categories now covered natively
Microsoft’s recent developer communications and blog posts list an expanding roster of Arm-native apps across multiple categories. Highlights include:- Endpoint protection: major antivirus and EDR vendors have announced or released Arm-compatible clients to support Copilot+ PCs in enterprise environments.
- VPN and ZTNA: mainstream remote access and privacy apps continue to add Arm builds, reducing friction for remote work scenarios.
- Endpoint management: MDM, RMM and remediation agents from large vendors are shipping Arm-compatible components, which matters for corporate manageability.
- Productivity and collaboration: Microsoft 365 apps, Slack, Dropbox, and mainstream browsers now ship Arm-native versions or optimized builds.
- Creative and media tools: an increasing set of creative apps now have Arm-native builds or previews, including major titles used by content creators.
- Social, web and entertainment: streaming and social apps have followed the trend, which helps consumer adoption where these services are a daily use case.
The platform safety net: App Assure and Arm Advisory Service
To address one of the most significant historical inhibitors to Arm adoption — application compatibility — Microsoft has doubled down on developer and enterprise support. The App Assure program, already part of FastTrack benefits, provides remediation help for customers and ISVs, and it explicitly supports Windows on Arm and Arm64 workloads. The Arm Advisory Service is a no-cost offering that provides technical workshops, code reviews, engineering escalation and hands-on guidance to help teams port and optimize applications for Arm. For enterprises planning rollouts or ISVs exploring Arm builds, these services materially lower the barrier to entry. (learn.microsoft.com)The silicon story: NPUs, TOPS and what they mean
40+ TOPS is a platform-level capability
Copilot+ PCs are defined by their NPUs; Microsoft calls out NPUs delivering more than 40 trillion operations per second. That number captures an NPU’s peak inference throughput for certain kinds of tensor operations and is a marketing-friendly shorthand for on-device AI capability. Multiple vendors — including Qualcomm (Snapdragon X series), AMD (Ryzen AI series) and Intel (Core Ultra 200V series) — now qualify devices for the Copilot+ designation by shipping systems with NPUs in the same general performance class. The practical effect is a platform capable of accelerating a range of local AI workloads, from live captions and real-time translation to image generation and local retrieval models. (microsoft.com)What TOPS does — and doesn’t — guarantee
TOPS is useful for comparing raw inferencing horsepower, but it is not a single-number oracle that predicts user experience across workloads. Real-world AI responsiveness and battery efficiency depend on:- Model size and architecture (LLMs vs vision models vs small on-device models).
- Software stack and runtime optimizations (on-device runtimes, quantization, compiler stacks).
- Thermal and power envelopes of the specific laptop chassis.
- Integration with CPU/GPU for mixed workloads.
Performance and battery: what Microsoft claims — and what independent reporting shows
Microsoft’s headline claims
Microsoft has made a cluster of comparative claims for Copilot+ PCs: up to 58% faster (vs a MacBook Air M3) in certain Cinebench multithreaded tests, up to 47% faster AI performance in specific AI workload tests, and all-day battery life figures that include up to 15 hours of web browsing and up to 22 hours of local video playback on certain configurations. Microsoft’s marketing materials also contend Copilot+ systems can be multiple times faster than the most common five-year-old Windows PCs still in use, an important metric for enterprises planning refresh cycles. These figures come from Microsoft-commissioned lab comparisons and device-specific testing. (microsoft.com)Independent reporting: corroboration and caveats
Independent outlets and technical reviewers have validated certain improvements — especially in AI task efficiency and battery longevity — while also pushing back on blanket “fastest” claims. Reviews show:- Some Snapdragon X Elite and AMD Ryzen AI designs deliver notable inferencing advantages on certain AI benchmarks compared with Apple M-series predecessors, driven largely by NPU throughput and optimized on-device models. (theverge.com)
- General-purpose CPU performance comparisons vary widely by workload; in many single-threaded or GPU-bound tasks, Apple Silicon or high-end Intel/AMD CPUs still lead. That makes the “faster than a Mac” message workload-dependent and sensitive to the precise devices being compared. (theverge.com)
- Battery life claims are plausible in controlled tests; however, real-world battery life depends on configuration, screen brightness, network usage, background AI tasks, and even the OS update level. Independent testing should be consulted for purchasing decisions. (windowscentral.com)
Enterprise readiness: security, manageability and compliance
Endpoint protection and VPN coverage
One of the biggest enterprise questions for any new endpoint class is whether security stacks and remote access tools are available and trustworthy. Microsoft’s ecosystem messaging highlights a broad list of endpoint protection vendors and VPN/ZTNA clients that now provide Arm-compatible builds or have announced work in that direction. That list includes mainstream EDR vendors and major VPN providers — a sign that defenders and remote access vendors see Copilot+ PCs as an enterprise platform rather than a consumer curiosity. Having native agents reduces the complexity and performance overhead of emulation and improves telemetry fidelity for security operations teams. (blogs.windows.com)Endpoint management: Intune, MDM and traditional tools
Modern device fleets require centralized policy enforcement, patch management and remote support. Microsoft and partner tooling — including Microsoft Intune, VMware Workspace ONE, Citrix, and many RMM vendors — have announced or provided Arm-compatible components, and App Assure has been used in customer engagements to remediate or port management agents. That presence lowers a key adoption barrier: the ability to manage Copilot+ PCs with the same policies and workflows organizations already use. (blogs.windows.com)Operational checklist for IT teams
- Inventory existing apps and prioritize by usage minutes and business criticality.
- Engage App Assure for remediation on critical LOB apps or where third-party vendors are unresponsive.
- Pilot Copilot+ devices with a representative user group that mirrors different business roles (knowledge workers, creatives, field engineers).
- Validate endpoint protection, VPN, and management artifacts in your environment — including network-based controls and DLP integrations.
- Measure real-world battery and performance across your typical workload mix; use those numbers to plan refresh cadence and TCO.
Developer guidance: porting, optimization, and the economics of Arm builds
Why ISVs are moving to Arm
Three practical reasons drive ISV interest: performance benefits for on-device AI features, improved battery life on mobile form factors, and a growing user base as OEMs ship Copilot+ PCs. Microsoft’s Arm Advisory Service removes many friction points by providing targeted engineering help and workshops. For ISVs whose value proposition includes AI features or mobile efficiency, investing in Arm-native builds is now an economic decision rather than a speculative experiment. (blogs.windows.com)Porting guidance (high level)
- Assess dependencies: native libraries, kernel-mode drivers, and vendor SDKs are common blockers.
- Use cross-architecture build tooling: SDKs and CI pipelines should build multi-arch installers or MSIX bundles that deliver the best binary for each platform.
- Optimize runtimes for NPUs: if your app uses AI models, provide model variants optimized for on-device runtimes — quantized or distilled models often yield the best trade-offs.
- Test across Prism and native runs: emulation is improved (Prism), but native performance and battery characteristics matter for premium experiences.
- Engage App Assure early: accelerate debugging and acceptance testing with Microsoft engineers.
Compatibility realities and remaining gaps
Emulation is much better — but it’s not parity
Microsoft’s new emulation engine, Prism, dramatically improves x86/x64 application performance on Arm compared with earlier Windows on Arm solutions. Many legacy apps now run well under emulation, and in some cases Prism makes emulated workloads usable for mainstream productivity tasks. However, emulation cannot fully replace native builds for high-performance UIs, GPU-accelerated workflows, or kernel-mode drivers. There are still specific classes of software — certain graphics-intensive games, specialized CAD or scientific apps, and older peripheral drivers — where either native builds or vendor updates are required. (microsoft.com)Feature parity: creative suites and pro tools
Major creative vendors have released Arm-native previews of heavyweight apps (for example, several Adobe creative apps moved to public preview for Arm). But feature parity is a gradual process. Some plugins, codecs, or third-party extensions may not immediately be available on Arm builds. For content professionals who depend on niche workflows or third-party extensibility, the migration path requires careful testing and staged adoption. Independent reporting has highlighted both the major wins (native Premiere/After Effects previews in 2025) and the missing bits (plugin and codec gaps still being addressed). (windowscentral.com)Hardware and peripheral compatibility
Internal device components (Wi-Fi, fingerprint readers, camera drivers) are generally vetted by OEMs for Copilot+ devices, but legacy peripherals and some older printers or scanners can still present problems if their drivers are not available or maintained for Arm. Organizations should validate essential peripherals in pilot programs.Risks, unknowns and areas to watch
- Marketing vs. workload reality: many headline “faster than a Mac” claims are benchmark-specific. Decision-makers must map workloads to benchmark scenarios, not marketing soundbites. Independent benchmarks should be used for procurement decisions. (tomshardware.com)
- Feature parity for pro users: creative and scientific users reliant on plugin ecosystems may not yet have full parity; evaluate critical workflows before migrating. (windowscentral.com)
- Driver/peripheral gaps: older printers, scanners, or niche hardware may require vendor updates that are not always available. Test critical hardware. (windowscentral.com)
- Privacy and manageability of on-device AI features: features like Recall introduce new telemetry and data-handling considerations. Organizations should review data governance and DLP policies to maintain compliance with internal and external rules. (blogs.windows.com)
- Regional regulatory and market dynamics: availability of features and preinstalled Copilot services can vary by market and regulatory environment; validate region-specific behavior for global rollouts.
Practical guidance: how to evaluate Copilot+ PC adoption for your organization
- Start with application usage analytics. Prioritize apps by active minutes and criticality — Microsoft’s “90% of minutes” metric is usage-weighted and should guide which apps get top priority for testing and porting. (blogs.windows.com)
- Run pilot fleets. Deploy Copilot+ devices to representative users in knowledge work, creative, and field roles, and measure battery, performance, and app behavior under normal workloads.
- Engage App Assure early. Use Microsoft’s App Assure and Arm Advisory Service for remediation and to accelerate vendor engagement when a third-party app lacks an Arm build. (learn.microsoft.com)
- Validate security and management stack. Confirm EDR/AV, VPN/ZTNA, Intune, and other controls function as required in your network topology and security posture. (blogs.windows.com)
- Plan a staged refresh. Use device refresh windows and Windows 10 end-of-support dates as natural transition points; Windows 10’s end of support is scheduled for October 14, 2025, which places a hard timeline on many upgrade decisions. (support.microsoft.com)
The developer opportunity and ecosystem momentum
The momentum for Arm-native apps is not accidental. Vendors benefit from improved battery and AI performance on mobile form factors, and users benefit from lower power draw and faster on-device AI. Microsoft’s combination of public messaging, App Assure remediation, and advisory services reduces the friction for ISVs. Independent cross-checks show that the list of mainstream native Arm apps has grown substantially in the past 18 months and now covers a meaningful share of daily usage scenarios. If developers ship Arm-native builds early, they can capture both commercial and performance advantages as enterprises refresh hardware. (newsroom.arm.com)What to watch next
- Major creative and pro apps finishing parity on Arm (plugin and codec support). (windowscentral.com)
- Independent benchmarks that compare real-world mixed workloads (productivity + AI features + battery) across representative Copilot+ models and competing Apple, Intel, and AMD systems. (theverge.com)
- Broader enterprise adoption signals: large-scale procurement announcements, long-term EMM/EDR vendor roadmaps for Arm, and how quickly smaller ISVs adopt Arm builds. (blogs.windows.com)
- Regulatory and regional changes that affect preinstalled Copilot services or data residency for on-device AI features.
Conclusion
Copilot+ PCs mark a meaningful evolution in the Windows ecosystem: hardware vendors have shipped NPUs with serious on-device AI throughput, Microsoft has marshalled developer and compatibility programs to accelerate Arm adoption, and a usage-weighted majority of app minutes are now covered by Arm-native builds. For enterprises, the combination of improved on-device AI, extended battery life, and a growing list of supported security and management tools reduces the risk of migration — but it does not eliminate it. Procurement and IT teams should validate workload-specific performance, confirm critical third-party integrations, and use Microsoft’s App Assure and Arm Advisory Service to manage the migration.The Arm app ecosystem is now enterprise-capable in many common scenarios, but careful pilot testing and a disciplined rollout remain essential. The promise is real: better battery life, competitive performance on AI tasks, and a widening catalog of apps — provided organizations match vendor claims to their real-world workloads and remain mindful of gaps that still require vendor action or native builds. (microsoft.com)
Source: Windows Blog Empowering the future: The expanding Arm app ecosystem for Copilot+ PCs
