Apple is reportedly making a major change to its Mac chip strategy by skipping the M6 Pro and M6 Max processors. Instead of releasing a complete M6 family, the company plans to launch the base M6 chip later this year before moving directly to the M7 generation in 2027. The decision reflects Apple’s growing focus on artificial intelligence, which is now influencing how it develops and schedules future chips.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple originally planned to follow its usual release pattern with M6 Pro, M6 Max, and M6 Ultra chips. However, the company changed course after deciding that the larger Neural Engine improvements planned for the M7 family deserved an earlier launch.
“Apple had been planning major neural-processing upgrades for the M7 family and ultimately decided those improvements were important enough to justify accelerating the next generation rather than completing the M6 lineup. AI is no longer just another feature Apple’s chips need to support. It is now shaping how those products are designed and when they are shipped,” Mark Gurman wrote in the latest edition of the Power On newsletter.
The report says Apple expects to release the base M7 chip during the first half of 2027, followed by M7 Pro and M7 Max later that year, while the M7 Ultra is currently planned for 2028. Gurman also said the M7 Ultra will deliver a major jump in AI performance and may eventually power Apple Intelligence servers starting in 2029.
Meanwhile, Apple still plans to complete the M5 lineup with an M5 Ultra chip later this year. If the report proves accurate, the M6 generation will become the first Apple Silicon family to launch without Pro, Max, or Ultra variants, highlighting how AI has become a key factor in Apple’s future chip development.
