Apple may skip M6 Pro and Max chips entirely, jumping straight to an AI-focused M7 lineup
Follow UsApple is reportedly planning to launch only a base M6 chip this year
The next Pro, Max and Ultra chips will instead arrive as part of an AI-focused M7 generation
The report comes the same week Apple quietly raised Mac and iPad prices in India,
Apple is preparing a significant change to its Mac chip strategy, according to a Bloomberg report by Mark Gurman. The company is shipping its M5 generation now and plans a base M6 chip later this year for entry-level Macs. But for the first time since the M1 launched in 2020, Apple will reportedly skip the Pro and Max variants entirely, jumping straight to a new AI-focused M7 lineup for its higher-end chips instead.
SurveyThe move is meant to fast-track AI and graphics technologies planned for later, meeting rising demand for on-device AI sooner. Apple has introduced Pro and Max variants with every chip generation from M1 through M5, so skipping them would be unusual. The base M6 is expected to bring a redesigned GPU, an upgraded Neural Engine and memory bandwidth rising to around 200 GB/s from roughly 153 GB/s on the M5.
The base M7 could arrive as early as the first half of next year, with M7 Pro and M7 Max following by late 2027 and an M7 Ultra expected in 2028 for the highest-end Mac Studio. Apple still plans one more M5 Ultra chip for a delayed Mac Studio, though memory configurations may be limited by ongoing supply constraints, the same issue cited for the broader roadmap change.
Coincidentally, Apple raised Mac and iPad prices globally this week and in India the jumps have been steep. The Mac mini with the M4 chip now costs Rs 82,900, up from Rs 59,900, while the MacBook Air M5 has risen from Rs 1,20,900 to Rs 1,49,900. Apple TV 4K and HomePod prices have climbed sharply too.
Apple hasn’t officially commented on either the chip roadmap or the price increases, but both appear to trace back to the same cause which is a global memory shortage that outgoing CEO Tim Cook has described as “a hundred-year flood”.
