Apple to Upgrade Mac Lineup with AI-Powered M4 Chip Later This Year

For the past few months, Apple AI plans have been all over the news. We’ve heard that the giant is gearing up to bring Generative AI to iPhones with its upcoming iOS 18 update. Now, a recent report from Mark Gurman suggests that Apple is planning to revamp its entire Mac lineup with new AI-focused M4 chips. These new Apple’s in-house processors will have a huge focus on improving performance with Artificial Intelligence capabilities.

We all know that Apple is lagging behind its competitors in the AI race. It’s been over a year since major players like Google and Microsoft released their AI chatbots. Also, Microsoft is betting big on the AI-focused Qualcomm Snapdragon X series chips. Interestingly, Apple is also preparing to bring Generative AI capabilities to its devices. Apple CEO Tim Cook previously, spiced up our expectations, confirming Apple’s Generative AI features for late 2024. The upcoming iOS 18 and M4 processors could be a masterstroke we all have been waiting for.

The M4 chips are likely to have the same 3-nanometer process as the M3 chips. However, Apple supplier TSMC is expected to deploy an improved version to deliver performance boost and power efficiency. The giant is also planning to use an improved Neural Engine with a higher number of cores for AI tasks. With M4 chips, the Mac desktops could support up to 512GB of Unified Memory, which would be a significant jump from the current 192GB limit.

According to the reports, the M4 processor will come in three versions – Conan, an entry-level chip; Brava, a mid-ranger; and Hydra, the top-end M4.

At the moment, there’s no specific timeline for the M4 processor release. Apple introduced the M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips in October 2023. So, we might expect the M4 lineup around the same time this year. Since Apple is all set to bring Generative AI, a refresh so soon would make complete sense. According to Gurman, Apple is likely to refresh its entire Mac lineup with M4 across late 2024 and early 2025.

The 14-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac would be the first of Apple’s machines to get the AI-focused M4 processors. Joining these will be the 13-inch & 15-inch MacBook Air models in spring 2025, Mac Studio in mid-2025, and Mac Pro in late 2025.