Interest in adopting AI from both the Higher Ed space and the K-12 segment has been positive, with faster uptake from universities, which are more autonomous and able to set their own AI regulations. In addition, Higher Ed students, unlike those in K-12, are typically over 18 years old and therefore are not impacted by age restrictions. In the K-12 segment, interest from teachers is positive if AI can be used to save time and help drive improved learning outcomes, although, there are some reports of schools looking to deploy AI to measure teacher performance and set KPIs, which has caused some concern.
In H2 2024, AI PCs in Higher Ed continued to represent a small portion of institutional deployments, as most organisations prioritised experimenting with AI software tools over the hardware. At the same time, it allowed institutions to investigate the main teaching and learning areas where AI PCs will bring the most benefits. With growing industry-academia partnerships and the rollout of compute-intensive academic programs, interest in AI PCs is expected to accelerate. Institutional demand is forecast to grow significantly—from 281k units in 2024 to nearly 14.6 million units by 2029.