To boost sluggish computer sales, Apple is preparing to overhaul its entire Mac lineup with a new family of in-house processors designed for artificial intelligence (AI).
The company, which released its first Macs with M3 chips five months ago, is already close to producing the next generation – the M4 processor, according to insiders. The new chip will come in at least three main variants, and Apple plans to update every Mac model with it, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans have not yet been announced.
The new Macs are on the market at a critical time. After peaking in 2022, Mac sales fell 27 percent in the last fiscal year that ended in September. During the holiday season, revenue from the computer line remained unchanged. Apple tried to breathe new life into the Mac business last October with a launch event focused on the M3, but those chips didn’t deliver any significant performance improvements over last year’s M2.
Apple is also catching up in the area of AI and is seen as a laggard compared to Microsoft, Alphabet’s Google and other technology competitors. The new chips are part of a broader push to integrate AI features into all of its products.
Apple aims to launch the updated computers starting later this year and continuing into early next year. There will be new iMacs, a low-end 14-inch MacBook Pro, high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros, and Mac minis – all with M4 chips. But the company’s plans could change. An Apple spokesman declined to comment.
The move represents a rapid refresh schedule for the iMac and MacBook Pro, as both product lines were only updated in October. The Mac mini was last updated in January 2023.
Apple then plans to launch more M4 Macs throughout 2025. These include updates to the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air by spring, the Mac Studio around mid-year, and the Mac Pro later in 2025. The MacBook Air received the M3 chip last month, while Mac Studio and Mac Pro were updated last year with M2 processors.
The M4 chip lineup includes an entry-level version called Donan, more powerful models called Brava, and a top-end processor codenamed Hidra. The company plans to highlight the components’ AI processing capabilities and their integration into the next version of macOS, which will be announced at Apple’s annual developer conference in June.
The Donan chip comes to the entry-level MacBook Pro, the new MacBook Airs and a low-end version of the Mac mini, while the Brava chips are used in the high-end MacBook Pros and a more expensive version of the Mac mini . For the Mac Studio, Apple is testing versions with an as yet unreleased chip from the M3 era and a variant of the M4 Brava processor.
Apple’s top-of-the-line desktop, the Mac Pro, is set to receive the new Hidra chip. The Mac Pro remains the lowest-selling model in the company’s computer lineup, but it has a vocal fan base. After some customers complained about the specifications of Apple’s in-house chips, the company plans to improve the machine next year.
Apple’s big focus this year is adding new AI features to its products. The company plans to unveil a number of new features at its developer conference in June. Much of these features are designed to run on the devices themselves – rather than on remote servers – and faster chips will help drive these improvements. Apple is also planning AI-focused upgrades for this year’s iPhone processor.
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