Apple M5 chipset: First MacBook Pro, then iPad Pro
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple will bring its next-generation M5 chipset to the MacBook Pro in the fall, followed by the iPad Pro in the first half of 2026.
Gurman’s latest claim flips the previously expected order of devices for the transition from M4 to M5 chips. Apple first introduced its M4 chip in an updated iPad Pro in May 2024, followed by the MacBook Pro in October. But now it sounds like the Apple M5 chipset will land in the notebook first this time.
Gurman says that before the M5 MacBook Pro models are released, Apple will release updates of the Mac Studio and Mac Pro with the current-generation M4 series of chips. These machines could arrive around Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2025.
The Apple M5 chipset is expected to feature an improved ARM architecture and will reportedly be manufactured using TSMC’s advanced 3 nanometer process technology. TSMC’s even more modern 2nm process was reportedly even discussed for the M5 chip. Ultimately, however, the cost of doing so was too high. Nevertheless, the high-end versions of the M5 will still offer significant advances over the M4 variants, mainly through the introduction of TSMC’s System on Integrated Chip (SoIC) technology.
Apple M5 chipset with 3D stacking
This 3D chip stacking approach stacks the chips vertically, improving thermal management and reducing electrical leakage compared to traditional 2D designs. Apple is said to have expanded its collaboration with TSMC on the next-generation hybrid SoIC package, which also combines thermoplastic carbon fiber composite molding technology.
References to the Apple M5 chipset have been spotted in macOS code as early as 2023. According to a report, thanks to its dual-use SoIC design, Apple also plans to use the M5 chip within its AI server infrastructure. This means that the AI functions should benefit from the potential of the M5 both on-device and with the cloud behind them.
