On October 7, HP Japan held its annual event, "HP Future of Work AI Conference 2026," at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel. The conference theme, "Social Implementation of AI for Tangible Results ~ The Forefront of Local and Hybrid AI," introduced concepts, cutting-edge technologies, and practical use cases for directly linking AI to business outcomes. Over 1,000 attendees visited the venue, where HP also unveiled the new 14-inch AI PC "HP EliteBook 8 G2iW 14" and the high-performance mobile workstation "HP ZBook Ultra G3a 16."
During the event's keynote speech, Gagan Singh of HP Inc. elaborated on how AI is transforming the very nature of work. He particularly emphasized the importance of "AI at the Edge," which processes AI not just in the cloud but also on devices, and "Personal Intelligence," which closely caters to users. Furthermore, he outlined three core pillars: building trusted AI edge, realizing always-on personal AI, and transforming workplaces with AI, demonstrating HP's commitment to delivering a consistent AI experience regardless of device or location.
The highly anticipated new product, the "HP EliteBook 8 G2iW 14," is a 14-inch AI PC meticulously designed with the usage patterns of Japanese business professionals in mind. It features a lightweight design weighing less than 1kg for easy portability, a long-lasting battery, advanced security, and a comprehensive set of connectivity ports. This device is said to support a flexible work style that moves between the office and the field, accommodating everything from commuting on crowded trains and moving within and outside the company to online meetings on the go.
In the exhibition area, the mobile workstation "HP ZBook Ultra G3a 16" for AI workloads and the next-generation video conferencing system "HP Dimension with Google Beam" were also showcased. The ZBook Ultra G3a 16, in particular, is a high-performance machine equipped with the AMD Ryzen AI Max PRO 400 series and supporting up to 192GB of memory, designed with an eye toward local execution of large-scale AI models. HP Dimension with Google Beam offers a new communication experience that projects remote participants as if they are in the same physical space using 3D video, capturing their expressions and gestures three-dimensionally. HP Japan's policy is to continue pushing AI from the "using" stage to the "producing results" stage through ongoing support for AI PCs, AI workstations, and hybrid AI utilization.
