Why The Great Refresh Is a Great Time to Future-Proof Your Organization With AI Devices
Written by Dr. Justin Morris, Ph.D.
Dr. Justin Morris is an academic philosopher turned tech writer. As a contributor to Tech Journal, Justin applies his extensive knowledge of ethical issues to endorse sustainable practices and encourage forward-looking conduct within the tech industry.
Contributors:Matt Skaff, Juan Orlandini, Tre Powers
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AI has been a part of our lives, whether we’ve realized it or not, for several years. Familiar voice assistants and home devices have been building your grocery lists, setting your alarms, searching the internet and accidentally calling your ex, Dan, instead of your dad.
Ever since generative AI became the hot new word on the block in late 2022 and early 2023, AI has been popping up more in our personal and business lives. Generative AI is becoming a key feature in applications — and the growing intensity of workloads demands hardware that can keep up.
And now, like so many other organizations, you’re at the convergence of expiring technology lifecycles and the blooming of AI integration. It’s called The Great Refresh. And it compels a strategic response.
Three reasons: pandemic-era device purchases are now four years old, Windows 10 reaches its end of life on Oct. 14, 2025, and perhaps the most compelling of all, AI will be everywhere. Consider this chain of events:
OpenAI unveils ChatGPT. Fewer than two years later, AI becomes a common sight in the workplace. Microsoft Copilot and similar AI-driven technologies now perform critical business functions: recapping meetings, managing projects and helping organizations reclaim hundreds of hours.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger marvels at the power of AI PCs at Foundry Direct Connect: “It’s been over 40 years since I’ve been in the computing industry. [When] I showed up, it was sort of like, this is boring. You know, let’s add a few more cores on the chip. … And then AI happened. End of boring. This is transforming everything.”
Windows 10 will reach its end of life. If nothing changes, an estimated 33.8 million devices will be incapable of upgrading to Windows 11 and unable to meet employee demand for AI devices.
Past, present and future coalesce to form a clear message: Innovation does not wait. Organizations must anticipate and act rather than react and be rigid. For Matt Skaff, VP of IT at Insight, the AI-generated writing is on the wall: “If you really think generative AI is going to take off — and all indications are that it is — then you need to future-proof your organization.”
But isn’t it safer to wait and see where generative AI is heading before upgrading your workplace devices?Skaff and other leading industry experts would advise against that approach. “You don’t want to be sitting on the last month of the year trying to figure out Y2K and changing all your code,” says Skaff. “You want to be ahead of it.”Know who else wants to come out ahead in The Great Refresh? Your workforce.
If you really think generative AI is going to take off — and all indications are that it is — then you need to future-proof your organization.
Insight, in partnership with The Harris Poll, surveyed the attitudes of more than 600 employees and analyzed their responses according to age: Gen Z (age 22-26), Millennials (age 27-42) and Gen X/Boomers (age 43+). The report — “Quantifying Employee Attitudes Toward AI-Powered Devices” — reveals a number of surprising results that are worth exploring. However, the topline result is unmistakable: Employees of all ages across various departments are eager to participate in The Great Refresh.
Meeting employee demand for deep work:
73% of employees believe AI-powered devices will increase their productivity. How? By offloading the burden of shallow work onto AI — scheduling meetings, sorting emails, etc. — so they can focus on tasks that require serious (human) brain power.
Acknowledging employee confidence in capabilities:
75% of employees believe AI-powered devices will help their employer stay competitive. This vote of confidence should be rewarded with action — not paralysis by analysis.
Continuously optimizing today’s workflows for tomorrow’s workplace:
66% of business leaders have introduced private, secure generative AI tools in their organizations. This means 44% of business leaders urgently need to bridge an innovation gap that is widening by the week.
None of these findings surprise Juan Orlandini, CTO of Insight North America. “We’re at a great inflection point in the industry,” says Orlandini, “because over the next few years, we’re going to change how we use devices.” Use is one thing. But how will these devices change themselves?
We’re at a great inflection point in the industry, because over the next few years, we’re going to change how we use devices.
Yes, we’ve started to roll out AI devices to our teams.
Somewhat, we’ve worked on a roadmap to implement AI devices.
No, we’re interested, but need more information.
No, we have no interest in adding AI into our workplace.
Reflect on how fast generative AI capabilities evolved over the past few years. If you’re wondering what’s around the corner, Orlandini has your answer: “We’re now embedding those AI capabilities into the device.” That includes workplace devices. Organizations lacking a plan for device refreshes will fail to keep pace with the innovation cycle and risk falling behind.
It’s not as if falling behind is a new risk. However, the pace of AI’s development, especially generative AI, is moving 40 years faster than expected. Such unprecedented speed not only challenges you to adapt but to implement these advances as soon as they emerge.
Which raises a question we can answer now…
Like simplifying your device strategy, you don’t need to read tea leaves to see how AI devices can improve your daily operations. Some of the immediate benefits include:
Less waiting, more innovating
On-device AI delivers significantly faster processing power than traditional computing devices. With dedicated hardware optimized with neural processing units (NPUs), these devices are more efficient at running complex tasks, such as generative AI applications.
No fear of missing out on the next leap in AI
An Insight report reveals that a majority of business leaders (65%) are involving employees in developing AI use cases, boosting productivity (54%) and enhancing customer engagement (65%). By adopting AI devices now rather than later, your organization can future-proof its technology stack and maintain a competitive edge as AI evolves.
What happens on the device, stays on the device
So long as cloud connectivity is required to take advantage of AI capabilities, there will be lag and latency, both resulting in productivity losses. What if your data didn’t need to leave the device? That’s the promise of on-device AI. Faster, yes, but it also means greater security. Sensitive data is processed locally, never leaving the device, which keeps it private and safeguarded from external threats.
Bottom line: Employees want AI devices. Executives believe in AI devices. Businesses are already using AI devices.The good news: You don’t need to tackle a refresh of various devices on your own — especially when considering ownership models for desktops, smartphones and other devices.
Similar to how AI devices clear our agenda of tedious to-dos, adopting a device management approach like Device-as-a-Service (DaaS) outsources the burden of updating outdated devices to a trusted partner. How does it work? Take this real-life example: A multinational convenience store chain faced the challenge of outdated back-office computers that were too expensive to replace across 15,000 locations. The chain partnered with Insight and Google ChromeOS.Together, we rolled out Acer Chromebox CXI5 devices that supported multiple profiles per device. The technology accommodated various employee types and uses. This streamlined management tasks and improved employee retention, as well as allowed the stores to manage inventory more effectively and access essential apps with ease.
Moral of the client story: The implementation of DaaS provides a scalable, secure and efficient solution to manage devices across vast networks without the considerable upfront costs typical of widespread hardware upgrades. Unlike so much unstructured data, the benefits of DaaS aren’t siloed. The updated technology platforms enhance employee experience and improve security and performance across your entire organization exactly where needed most. And therein lies the strategic advantage of adopting DaaS. This approach allows for quick and effective modernization of your operations with AI devices — all while maintaining flexibility in device management and lifecycle.
Expert guidance on your device selection based on your business needs and employee personas.
Optimized costs with predictable costs, and efficient device management that reduces your total cost of ownership.
Sustainable lifecycle services to reduce waste and environmental impact.
Supportive services, including device imaging, fleet health monitoring, managed endpoint services, asset tracking and more.
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Generative AI use trends
54%
of businesses plan to use generative AI to drive productivity gains.
65%
aim to use AI to enhance customer engagement.
are involving employees in developing AI use cases.
59%
are using AI for product design.
52%
are leveraging AI for software development.
View more in the full report
Earlier we said, “Innovation does not wait.” Neither should you. The Great Refresh represents a pivotal moment where the convergence of expiring technology lifecycles and the rise of generative AI demands decisive action.
By eliminating the complexities associated with a device refresh and AI integration, your business remains agile, secure and ahead of a curve that may bend but cannot break your ability to be ambitious.
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