Apple's M7 Ultra might compete with Nvidia Blackwell, boasting an impressive 1.5TB of memory.

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      Bloomberg reports that Apple's upcoming AI chip is being developed for purposes that extend beyond future Macs.

      Apple’s forthcoming flagship chip may not simply represent a regular performance enhancement. According to Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, Apple is creating the M7 Ultra with a primary objective: significantly enhancing AI capabilities. Anticipated to be released in 2028, this processor is believed to be engineered to manage workloads comparable to specialized AI accelerators like Nvidia’s Blackwell, rather than conventional desktop processors.

      A desktop chip featuring server-level memory

      The most notable feature is its memory capacity. Bloomberg indicates that the M7 Ultra is being designed to support up to 1.5TB of unified memory, which is approximately double the expected capacity for Apple’s upcoming M5 Ultra. This is an astonishing amount, even for workstation levels, far exceeding what is available in today’s consumer Macs. The rationale is straightforward: larger AI models require larger memory resources, and Apple aims for its future chips to accommodate them without an overreliance on external storage or cloud solutions.

      There is, however, a potential limitation. Bloomberg highlights that Apple's ability to deliver Macs with the full 1.5TB configuration will depend on the status of the memory market. Persistent shortages of memory chips make sourcing high-capacity modules challenging and considerably pricier, implying that the upper limit of configuration may depend as much on supply chain factors as on technical development.

      AI is not the only aim

      Moreover, the M7 Ultra is not exclusively intended for future Macs. Bloomberg notes that Apple plans to leverage this chip as the foundation for its next-gen AI servers. Although an M5 Ultra-based server setup is expected to debut first, engineers are already working on a more advanced M7 Ultra-powered architecture set for deployment around 2029, which will support Apple Intelligence both on devices and in the cloud.

      More crucially, the M7 Ultra signifies a significant shift in Apple’s chip development strategy. Rather than focusing solely on enhancing CPU speed, graphics performance, or battery longevity, Bloomberg reports that AI is now at the forefront of the company’s chip design process. This reorientation is likely why Apple expedited the M7 series, with the Ultra model expected to deliver AI capabilities much closer to those found in enterprise accelerators like Nvidia’s Blackwell.

      To put it differently, Apple is shifting from designing chips that merely accommodate AI functions to creating chips specifically tailored for AI. If Bloomberg’s projections are accurate, the M7 Ultra could signify a pivotal moment when Apple's AI ambitions begin to rival those of leading firms in the enterprise computing space.

      Varun is an established technology journalist and editor with over eight years of experience in the consumer tech media sector. His background encompasses…

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