For AI, Apple is “giving up on squeezing toothpaste”! Reports say Apple cuts the M6 Pro/Max, and high-end Macs will go straight to the “M7 generation.”

According to the latest report from Bloomberg, Apple is making significant adjustments to the release schedule of its Apple Silicon chips. To fully focus on AI workloads, Apple plans to launch the base M6 chip by the end of this year, but will unexpectedly "skip" the high-end M6 Pro and M6 Max versions, directly advancing the high-end product line to the "M7 generation" in 2027, which specializes in on-device AI.
(Previous context: AI consumes memory capacity! Apple can't withstand the price increases for MacBook and iPad, stock price plunges over 5%)
(Background supplement: Trump: Apple will have Intel produce chips! INTC rises 6.6% before market open)

Table of Contents

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• First Time Ever! No Pro / Max High-End Versions for M6 Generation
• M6 First to Use 2nm Process, M7 Memory Bandwidth Soars
• Apple Silicon Future Estimated Release Schedule
• New Product Layout Affected, MacBook Ultra May Be Delayed

After raising prices on MacBooks and iPads across the board due to surging AI memory costs, Apple has made another surprising move in its hardware infrastructure. According to the latest information disclosed by Bloomberg on June 25, 2026, Apple is significantly revising its Apple Silicon chip development roadmap to cope with the increasingly fierce AI computing power arms race.

First Time Ever! No Pro / Max High-End Versions for M6 Generation

The report indicates that Apple plans to release the base M6 chip as scheduled by the end of 2026, for use in entry-level Mac devices. However, what shocks the market is that Apple has decided to directly "cancel" the high-end versions of this generation — the M6 Pro and M6 Max. This would be the first time since Apple abandoned Intel and fully switched to self-developed Apple Silicon that a "gap" appears in high-end chips within a single generation.

Apple made this bold strategic trade-off to focus its R&D resources and foundry capacity entirely on the M7 series chips, which are tailor-made for next-generation AI workloads. High-end Mac users seeking Pro or Max-level performance leaps will have to wait patiently until the end of 2027.

M6 First to Use 2nm Process, M7 Memory Bandwidth Soars

Despite the lack of high-end versions, the base M6 still features significant upgrades. Sources indicate that the M6 is likely Apple's first chip to use a 2nm process, and will feature an updated memory architecture, an upgraded Neural Engine, and a redesigned GPU with up to 12 cores, with base memory bandwidth expected to increase to 200GB/s.

The true AI killer feature, the "M7 generation," will be highly focused on on-device AI and GPU-intensive software. The base M7's memory bandwidth is expected to reach up to 240GB/s (compared to only 153GB/s for the M5 base version), providing robust throughput for running large local large language models (LLMs).

Apple Silicon Future Estimated Release Schedule

| Estimated Time | | --- | Chip Model | Expected Products & Notes | | --- | --- | --- | | End of 2026 | M5 Ultra | Mac Studio Update (Up to 36-core CPU + 80-core GPU, supports 768GB memory) | | End of 2026 | M6 (Base) | Entry-level MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac, iPad Pro / Air | | First Half of 2027 | M7 (Base) | Next-generation entry-level product update, focusing on on-device AI | | End of 2027 | M7 Pro / M7 Max | High-end MacBook Pro, high-end Mac mini return | | 2028 | M7 Ultra | Next-generation top-tier Mac Studio / Mac Pro |

New Product Layout Affected, MacBook Ultra May Be Delayed

This dramatic shift in chip roadmap directly impacts the launch timeline of other Apple hardware products. Previously, the market widely speculated that Apple might launch a new high-end model, the "MacBook Ultra," with an OLED screen and touch functionality by the end of 2026. However, since the M7 Pro and M7 Max have been postponed to the end of 2027, if this flagship model does not compromise by using the M5 Max or the base M6 as a transitional solution, its launch timeline is highly likely to be forced to be delayed.

From recent price hikes due to memory shortages to now breaking chip generation conventions for AI performance, Apple's series of decisions highlight the immense R&D and cost pressures that the AI transformation imposes on global tech giants. For Apple fans craving ultimate performance, the high-end Mac market in 2026 may face a rare gap period.