Artificial Intelligence is widely regarded as the next big thing in mobile computing. Apple has been slow to react. What does this mean for the next generation of MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops?
While the iPhone could join the fray in September, the highly successful MacBook platform may not gain any dedicated AI hardware that will run AI-focused software until the release of the M4 chipset in early 2025.
Apple is no stranger to creating this close partnership between the base hardware and the low-level software that runs on it. This is one of the reasons why Apple Silicon can offer more power and performance over its rivals… when you have an incredibly limited pool of hardware along with tightly controlled code that will run on it, you can design the hardware for specific tasks and the software can be written knowing that certain tasks can be offloaded into the hardware.
This will be the case with artificial intelligence. Apple’s next deskbound chipset, the Apple Silicon M4, will no doubt offer more raw power and performance, but it will also have to address the AI revolution. With the competition already offering hardware-based AI silicon, consumers can see that Apple is behind the curve in terms of AI.
This year’s Worldwide Developer Conference will be the first public event where Apple can reply to the rise in AI and offer its own solutions. While it may be too early in the current M3’s production cycle to Osbourne it with details on the M4, Apple can set the scene with its software and development tools. It would be best if you also looked to the iPhone, which is arguably further back on the AI curve than rival smartphones. I’d expect a significant amount of crossover between iOS and the Axx chipsets, and macOS and the Mxx chipsets.
This leaves consumers in a curious halfway house. While the current MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops are undoubtedly fit for purpose, they are missing out on one of the key tools that is redefining computing at this very moment.
Given the expected lifespan of a new laptop, any MacBook purchased now is going to be in use for a long time. And any MacBook purchased now is going to miss out on a potential boost to the AI storm that will hit over the next few years.
Now read more about the critical fixes in macOS Apple released this week…
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