Apple‘s M5 chip isn’t even here yet, but we’re already hearing rumors about the next generation and beyond.
In his latest report for Bloomberg, Apple expert Mark Gurman indicates the company is already working on the next several generations of Apple silicon, including the M6 and M7 chipsets.
Apple is expected to launch the first products using the M5 in the fall, with the MacBook Pro models getting the chip first this time around. The iPad Pro and MacBook Air models with the M5 are expected to hit the market in early 2026.
This means that the soonest we could see the M6 is likely Fall 2026. But what do we know about the M6 and M7 so far?
M6 and M7 are reportedly in development
What are Apple’s “Komodo” chips?
Gurman’s latest Apple report includes the codenames for upcoming Apple Silicon chipsets. The “Komodo” chips are expected to be the M6 generation, while the “Borneo” chips are likely the M7. Gurman also includes information on a future Apple chip codenamed “Sotra.”
The upcoming M6 and M7 chips are designed to power upcoming Mac devices, including the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air models. And likely an iPad or two. The Apple M6 generation is expected to be the first Apple chips manufactured on TSMC’s 2nm silicon wafer process node.
While we still expect the M6 and M7 to be powerful computing chips, Apple appears to focus more on AI for future chip generations. This makes perfect sense.
As more people use artificial intelligence, we start demanding more from it, leading to more complex AI models that require more powerful hardware. Since AI uses all three hardware accelerators (CPU, GPU, and NPU), it stands to reason that the M6 and M7 will be powerful all-around chips.
But that’s not Apple’s development team’s only AI in the works.
Apple is also working on data center chips that will be used in the Apple Intelligence servers, replacing the current high-end Mac chips that run the Apple servers. These chips are part of the “Baltra” project and are expected to be finished by 2027.
What this means for the M5 generation
Ultimately, this just means the Apple M5 will eventually be outpaced by its successor. That’s not really news.
Chips should get better with each generation as chipmakers refine the technology and adapt to smaller and smaller silicon processes. No one is happy if a chipmaker puts out a new chip that underperforms compared to the last generation or doesn’t increase in performance. That was Intel‘s main issue with the Core Ultra 200S “Arrow Lake” launch on desktops last fall. Intel is still tweaking 200S performance even six months later.
If Apple’s usual performance trend holds, the M5 generation will still improve over the M4. And the M6 will improve on the M5, while the M7 will improve on the M6.
If you just upgraded to an M3 or M4 Mac, you can wait until the M6 or later.
But if you’re still using an old Intel-based Mac or the M1 generation, you may consider upgrading to the M5. After all, the average laptop upgrade cycle is around four years.
