Microsoft confirms Surface announcement for later this month — teases 'major' news for business portfolio

Microsoft has confirmed in a LinkedIn post via the official Surface account that the company will share a major announcement from Surface for Business on January 30, during the company’s AI Tour event in New York City.

"Get Ready! Join us at the Microsoft AI Tour in NYC for a major announcement from Surface for Business. Mark your calendars and don't miss out" reads the LinkedIn post. A link to the Microsoft AI Tour website is also provided, but there's no mention of any Surface news coming on that page just yet.

I understand that Microsoft is planning to launch new Intel-powered variants of the Surface Laptop 7 and Surface Pro 11 for business in the next couple of months, so perhaps that's what the company is planning to unveil here. Said devices will be powered by Intel Lunar Lake chips, making them the first Intel-powered Copilot+ PCs in the Surface portfolio.

Leaked photos of the Surface Laptop 7 with Intel appeared online last year, confirming the external design will remain identical to the existing Surface Laptop 7 with Snapdragon. I have heard that Microsoft will offer a 5G variant of the Surface Laptop 7 with Intel for the first time, but this likely won’t begin shipping until much later in the year.

Both the Surface Laptop 7 and Surface Pro 11 with Intel will be aimed at Microsoft’s commercial customers, just like the Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10. That means you won’t find them at retailers like Amazon or Best Buy, but you can still buy them directly from the Microsoft Store if you want one.

Since the departure of Panos Panay, Microsoft has openly separated commercial-focused hardware from its consumer offerings. In 2024, Microsoft held two Surface events in the span of just a few months, one for commercial hardware and the other for consumer hardware.

This may be the new normal for Surface. That said, the next big Surface Pro and Surface Laptop refresh for consumers likely won’t arrive until later this year or early 2026, when the next generation Snapdragon X2 processors are expected to be ready.