If you’ve bought a laptop in the last couple of years, you’ve probably heard marketing jokes about the super cool NPU inside it. What you haven’t heard much about is what this NPU can actually do, since most of these flashy AI capabilities rely on remote data centers and most “AI” applications that ‘running on your local hardware aren’t even using it yet. That’s about to change, according to Microsoft.

Related: What is an NPU? AI chips, explained

As part of this year’s Ignite developer conference, Microsoft says Windows 11’s built-in search feature will be accelerated by the NPU in Copilot+ laptops and other hardware. According to the announcement, the improved version of search will include the broader Windows Search (what’s in the Start menu) as well as more granular searches in File Explorer and Settings.

“Users will be able to find the right files, including documents and photos, without needing to remember file names or exact file contents. Users will be able to search for local documents by describing their content or using synonyms for content within the documents,” the press release states. And because it works locally, this new feature won’t depend on an Internet connection.

The most useful feature mentioned is the ability to “search by image content, including any text found in an image.” I can think of many different things better keep this just in case document photos I have in my Dropbox folder that would be much easier to find this way.

Windows’ ability to search local files and their contents definitely leaves a lot to be desired in its current form. As the press release says, if you can’t remember the name of the file or its approximate location in the folder hierarchy, you’re pretty much out of luck.

That said, the announcement is nebulous enough that I won’t hold my breath waiting for a huge improvement, especially in terms of speed. I guess Windows will have to process every image in your home folders for both content and context, otherwise AI-enhanced search would slow down to crawling, with or without NPU.

But that’s a prediction I’d be happy to be wrong. We will know in early 2025. The new Windows Search will eventually arrive on all Copilot+ PCs, but Snapdragon machines will benefit from the first test via the Windows Insider program.

Further reading: Crucial Things to Know Before Buying a Copilot+ PC