Apple is radically changing its silicon development strategy. According to Bloomberg, citing anonymous sources, this year the company will limit itself to releasing only the base M6 processor for entry-level Mac models, marking the first time since the M1 that it will skip the Pro, Max, and Ultra versions entirely. Instead, the corporation will redirect all resources toward accelerating development of the M7 line, which will be optimized for on-device artificial intelligence workloads. The decision moves the M7 launch forward by roughly six months: the Pro and Max versions are now expected in late 2027, with the Ultra arriving in 2028.

The base M6 chip (codenamed Komodo) is designed for entry-level models, including the updated 14-inch MacBook Pro, whose price recently rose to $1,999. It will feature memory bandwidth of 200 GB/s (up from 153 GB/s on the M5) and a GPU with 12 cores (up from 10 on its predecessor). However, the main focus is shifting to the future: the base M7 (Delos), expected in the first half of 2027, will deliver up to 240 GB/s of bandwidth – a 56% increase over the M5, which is critical for fast movement of large data sets during on-device AI inference. The higher-end M7 versions, grouped under the codename Andros, will arrive in late 2027 (Pro and Max) and in 2028 (Ultra).

Apple hasn't forgotten about the professional segment either. This year will see the release of the M5 Ultra chip (Sotra), which will skip the M4 Ultra generation and refresh the Mac Studio lineup. The top-tier solution will feature up to 36 CPU cores and 80 GPU cores, as well as support for a massive 768 GB of unified memory – an eightfold increase over its predecessor, which was limited to 96 GB.

These ambitious plans are colliding with market reality. Apple was recently forced to significantly raise prices on its computers and tablets. Outgoing CEO Tim Cook described the current situation as a "hundred-year flood," explaining that the memory shortage stems from surging demand from AI servers, which are soaking up all available high-bandwidth chips. As a result, the company has had to reconfigure its offerings: it eliminated the 128 GB and 512 GB options, and raised the cost of the upgrade from 96 GB to 256 GB to $2,000. Availability of the top-tier M5 Ultra configurations with extreme memory capacities remains highly uncertain. Apple declined to comment on these plans.