According to Bloomberg, Apple is expected to launch a 14-inch entry-level MacBook Pro equipped with a new M6 chip as soon as this year. This will also be one of Apple's first commercial products using 2-nanometer process chips. The report pointed out that in addition to MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac and MacBook Air models are also evaluating options to upgrade to M6 chips, but currently Apple is testing the M6 version of MacBook Pro.
According to the news, Apple plans to officially launch the M6 chip by the end of 2026 and bring it to the market as an independent chip with a single specification for the first time. Apple is not currently developing high-performance variants such as the M6 Pro or M6 Max. Instead, it plans to save high-end chip upgrades for the M7 series in 2027, and then launch models such as M7 Pro, M7 Max, and M7 Ultra.
The M6 chip will use TSMC's 2nm process technology instead of the 3nm process used in recent generations of Apple chips. Compared with 3nm, the 2nm node can further reduce the size of transistors and accommodate more transistors in the same area, which usually means higher computing performance and better energy efficiency. There are rumors that Apple will use TSMC’s N2 process node to provide this new generation process foundation for the M6.
In terms of packaging technology, M6 will move from the previous InFo (integrated fan-out packaging) to WMCM (wafer-level multi-chip packaging). The WMCM solution helps reduce latency and improve internal data transmission efficiency by more tightly integrating different chip modules such as CPU, GPU, DRAM and neural network engines at the wafer level, thereby improving overall chip performance.
Bloomberg said that M6 is expected to become one of the most powerful chips in its class. The memory bandwidth of the new chip is expected to be increased to approximately 200GB/s, which is significantly higher than the 153GB/s of the M5. This will directly improve graphics processing capabilities and accelerate the efficiency of local AI tasks. At the same time, M6 will adopt an updated memory architecture and be equipped with an upgraded neural network engine to enhance AI-related processing capabilities and improve the video encoding and decoding unit to provide higher performance for video workflow applications.
In terms of GPU, Apple is testing an M6 version equipped with a 12-core graphics processor, while the current M5 chip has a maximum 10-core GPU configuration. The report pointed out that M6 will bring performance improvements on all processing cores, and the GPU will also be further optimized for AI and graphics loads to fit Apple’s long-term layout in device-side intelligence and graphics computing.
Apple previously updated the 14-inch basic MacBook Pro equipped with the M5 chip in October 2025, so it is considered "reasonable" to usher in the M6 update around 2026 in terms of product rhythm. In contrast, the entry-level Mac mini and iMac have not been updated since October 2024. Bloomberg had earlier said that these two devices planned to use M5 chips instead of M6, making Apple's specific plans for these models still somewhat vague. Although the latest report mentions that a number of entry-level Macs will use the M6, they only explicitly mention the MacBook Pro as an example.
In terms of the iPad product line, Apple has introduced the M5 chip for the iPad Pro in October 2025, but there is currently no sign that the series will receive an M6 update this year. Previous news said that there may not be a new iPad Pro hardware refresh in 2026, which also leaves uncertainty as to whether and when the M6 will enter the iPad camp. As for the MacBook Air, it has just been updated in March 2026, so it is expected that this product line may not usher in a new generation of chips until 2027.