Hopes for an "M4 Extreme" chip in the upcoming Mac Pro may be dashed. A recent report suggests that Apple has cancelled development of the high-end SoC.
Apple's M-series chips have made significant strides in performance and efficiency since their introduction. The M4 family continues this trend, but those expecting an "Extreme" variant, following the pattern of previous generations, might be disappointed.
According to The Information (via MacRumors), Apple had been exploring an M4 Extreme with the combined power of two M4 Ultra chips (or four M4 Max chips). However, these plans have reportedly been shelved to prioritize development of an Apple Silicon server chip. A similar situation occurred with the rumored M2 Extreme.
Had the M4 Extreme materialized, it would have boasted a 64-core CPU and a 160-core GPU, with a massive die size and transistor count exceeding even server-grade hardware. Whether Apple revisits the idea remains uncertain. An M4 Extreme-powered Mac Pro would undoubtedly be a flagship product, but its market viability might be a concern.
