Apple is quietly overhauling its MacBook chips, and waiting will cost you

Apple is reshuffling its high-end Mac silicon, and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman lays out the new order. A base M6 still arrives this year, but the Pro, Max and Ultra tiers skip ahead to M7. The first touch-screen MacBook Pro ships on M5 Pro and M5 Max instead, and the Mac Studio is next in line.

Apple skips the high-end M6 entirely

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, in his latest Power On newsletter (subscription required to view), reports that Apple is reordering its M-series chips. A base M6 still comes this year, but the higher tiers, the Pro, Max and Ultra, now jump straight to M7. Gurman has a reliable record on Apple's plans, so it's worth taking seriously, even if roadmaps can still shift.

The touch-screen MacBook Pro is where the change shows up most. We covered earlier that this redesigned model was expected to run M6 chips, but Gurman now says the first version ships with M5 Pro and M5 Max, with an M7 follow-up already in development.

Why the reshuffle is really about AI

For most people, the takeaway is simpler than the chip names. The newsletter ties the reshuffle to heavier on-device AI work, the kind that runs models locally instead of in the cloud, which runs hot and leans hard on the silicon.



The Mac Studio is the clearest example, and we covered earlier how memory shortages had pushed its timing. Gurman says an M5 Ultra version comes this year, an M7 Ultra is targeted for 2028, and Apple has been reworking the internals, including a better heat sink for those AI workloads.

If you're eyeing a rival desktop or workstation, this doesn't change much for you right now. It reads as an internal thermal and timing reshuffle, not a spec war you need to react to.

Who this actually changes things for

If you just bought an M5 or M5 Pro Mac, none of this is a reason for second thoughts, as the reshuffle is about what's coming, not what's on your desk now.

The people who should pay attention are anyone holding out for the touch-screen MacBook Pro or a new Mac Studio. As it stands, the bigger M7 leap is saved for a later model, so waiting for the best version likely means waiting well into the M7 window.

I'm glad I didn't hold out

I came close to waiting for the touch-screen MacBook Pro when I was laptop shopping earlier this year, but I went with the M5 MacBook Air instead. Reading this, I'm glad I did.

The model I almost held out for now starts on the current Pro and Max chips, with the real generational jump pushed to an M7 follow-up that's still in the works, and Mac prices just went up too. Holding out would have meant paying more to wait longer.

I'd still love to see the touch-screen MacBook Pro arrive and prove worth the wait. For me, though, a Mac that's already on my desk and doing the job beats one that keeps sliding out of reach.

• The M5 MacBook Air, the one I actually went with
• Follow me @jojothetechie on X and Threads for hot takes and behind-the-scenes coverage.

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