Apple working on M6 & M7 chips alongside new AI server processor

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in Future Apple Hardware edited May 8

While Apple's M5 chip is expected to debut on Mac and iPad, in late 2025, the company's M6 and M7 chips are in the works, in conjunction with a new AI server farm processor.

Open laptop with a silver logo rests on a gray couch corner in a softly lit room with a blurred background.
An M5-powered MacBook Pro could debut in 2025, while M6 and M7 chips will likely follow in the coming years.



The current M4 chip was introduced back in May 2024, making its debut with the iPad Pro. In October of the same year, it made its wayto the iMac, Mac mini, and MacBook Pro, while the MacBook Air received the system-on-chip in March 2025.

Much like the M4, Apple's new-and-improved M5 chip is expected to appear in the iPad Pro and MacBook Pro as early as the end of 2025. According to a Bloomberg report on Thursday, however, the iPhone maker is already working on multiple other chips, planned for future iPad and Mac products.

Specifically, the report claims that the M6 chip, codenamed "Komodo," and the M7, internally referred to as "Borneo," are in the works. There's even said to be an advanced Mac-related system-on-chip in development, known under the codename "Sotra," though no further details about the project were provided.

Supposedly, Apple also has plans for new AI server chips, which would replace the M2 Ultra that the company currently uses to process remote Apple Intelligence requests. A December 2024 report indicated that Apple was working with Broadcom. The claim was reiterated in Thursday's article, which says the project is dubbed "Baltra," and that it's set to be completed by 2027.

The iPhone maker is said to be experimenting with chips that have two, four, or even six times as many CPU and GPU cores as the high-end M3 Ultra. If implemented, the new AI chip would likely improve Apple Intelligence features, making them more powerful and competitive.

Claims about Apple's AI-related endeavors have been all over the place, however. A March 2025 report suggested that the company was investing in Nvidia AI servers for AI development, while an April 2025 rumor said the company might partner with a Japanese chipmaker for its Apple Intelligence needs.

As for the M5 chip, previous reports have indicated that it will debut in the MacBook Pro, which likely won't receive a redesign in 2025. An M5-powered iPad Pro would then follow, and it's reportedly already in testing.

The M5 could even make its way to the Apple Vision Pro in 2025 as well.

Rumor Score: Likely

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ikir

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    ikirikir Posts: 131member
    Can’t wait to test M5+ chips
    danox
     1Like 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 2 of 10
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 3,419member
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 

    Hopefully m5 cranks things up. But the real story with be with m6. 
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 3 of 10
    m4m40m4m40 Posts: 42member
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 

    Hopefully m5 cranks things up. But the real story with be with m6. 
    What’s expected from M6? Why is it going to be so much better?

    Rogue01danox
     1Like 1Dislike 0Informatives
  • Reply 4 of 10
    Rogue01rogue01 Posts: 246member
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 
    The current form is terrible with the unnecessary notch.  In an Enterprise environment with lots of required software that runs in the menu bar, icons are constantly hidden by the notch and users don't know what to do to find and move the icons.
    digitol
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  • Reply 5 of 10
    Wesley_Hilliardwesley_hilliard Posts: 472member, administrator, moderator, editor
    Rogue01 said:
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 
    The current form is terrible with the unnecessary notch.  In an Enterprise environment with lots of required software that runs in the menu bar, icons are constantly hidden by the notch and users don't know what to do to find and move the icons.
    So you'd rather have a smaller display or a larger laptop instead of installing a Menu Bar management app?
    digitol
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  • Reply 6 of 10
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 3,419member
    Rogue01 said:
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 
    The current form is terrible with the unnecessary notch.  In an Enterprise environment with lots of required software that runs in the menu bar, icons are constantly hidden by the notch and users don't know what to do to find and move the icons.
    As Wesley said, there are ways around a cluttered menu bar. But I was talking about the laptop redesign. Not a screen. Apple could do something different with the display without having to redesign the entire laptop. Likewise, they could keep the notch without issue. It’s a great design currently and is timeless, much like Porsche automobiles. Once you hit prrr ruin, uou don’t change just to change. 
    digitol
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  • Reply 7 of 10
    9secondkox29secondkox2 Posts: 3,419member

    m4m40 said:
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 

    Hopefully m5 cranks things up. But the real story with be with m6. 
    What’s expected from M6? Why is it going to be so much better?

    Ok. You got me. It may not be “so much better” depending on the choices they mske. But it’s expected to be the first apple silicon on tsmcs 2nm process, enabling a greater amount of performance per watt and run cooler. Or it could enable Apple to pack in a ton more transistors. It’s only a 1 nm difference, but even that has potential to mske a substantial difference. Then again, they could just do a die shrink with minimal design chsnges. However, at the expense of the new process, that is not likely. 


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  • Reply 8 of 10
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,727member
    m4m40 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 

    Hopefully m5 cranks things up. But the real story with be with m6. 
    What’s expected from M6? Why is it going to be so much better?


    The M6 will probably be the first Apple SOC that reaches and exceeds all of public facing chips from Intel, AMD and particularly Nvidia the lead producer of the barn burning 1000 watt discrete graphics cards sold to gamers in the PC world which will blow minds of PC world whom see Apples iteration/trajectory with Apple Silicon and currently don’t like what they see…..
    edited 1:51AM
    9secondkox2neoncat
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  • Reply 9 of 10
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,163member
    9secondkox2 said:
    No need for a MacBook Pro redesign. It’s pretty much perfect in its most recent form. 

    Hopefully m5 cranks things up. But the real story with be with m6. 
    I hear the M10 chip is gonna have entangled qbits.  That’s worth waiting for. /s
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 10 of 10
    lmglmg Posts: 9member
    Hopefully they take this AI server chip, and make it an option in the Mac Pro.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
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