Apple has introduced the M5 chip, which brings major improvements in AI performance and upgrades across almost every part of the chip. Built with third-generation 3nm technology, the M5 features a new 10-core GPU design with a neural accelerator in each core. This setup lets AI tasks run much faster, offering 4x the peak GPU compute performance of the M4. The GPU also offers better graphics capabilities and third-generation ray tracing, which together boost graphics performance by up to 45% compared to the M4.
Claiming the title of world’s fastest performance core, the M5’s CPU flexes up to 10 cores six built for efficiency, four for performance. This powerful blend delivers up to 15% faster multi-threaded performance than the M4. The chip is packed with a turbocharged 16-core neural engine and a robust media engine, plus nearly 30% more unified memory bandwidth, peaking at 153 GB. This all-star performance now fuels the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Apple Vision Pro each ready for the spotlight and available to pre-order now.
M5 ushers in the next significant step in AI performance for Apple’s silicon, said Johny Srouji, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies. With the introduction of neural accelerators in GPUs, M5 delivers a significant boost to AI workloads. Combined with a significant increase in graphics performance, the world’s fastest CPU core, a faster neural engine, and even higher unified memory bandwidth, M5 delivers far greater performance and capabilities across MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Apple Vision Pro.
A New GPU Architecture Designed For AI And Graphics
The M5’s cutting-edge GPU architecture is crafted to put AI front and center. Each of its ten GPU cores features a neural accelerator, sprinting ahead with over four times the peak GPU compute of M4 and more than six times the AI muscle of M1. With M5, the new 14″ MacBook Pro and iPad Pro conquer AI-driven tasks in record time, whether running diffusion models in creative apps like Draw Things or processing massive language models right on your device. Explore new creative heights with platforms such as WebAI.
The M5’s new GPU and improved shader cores boost graphics performance by up to 30% over the M4 and up to 2.5 times over the M1. The chip also features Apple’s third-generation Ray Tracing engine, which can increase graphics performance by up to 45% in apps that use Ray Tracing, thanks to redesigned dynamic caching. The GPU delivers more fluid gameplay, more realistic 3D visuals, and faster rendering for graphics projects. On the Apple Vision Pro, the M5 follows the micro OLED displays to show 10% more pixels and supports refresh rates up to 120 Hz, making images sharper, motion smoother, and reducing blur.
The GPU architecture is designed for effortless integration with Apple’s software frameworks. Applications that use built-in Apple frameworks and APIs such as Core ML, Metal Performance Shaders, and Metal 4 can achieve immediate performance gains. Developers can also build solutions for their apps by directly programming the neural accelerators using Tensor APIs in Metal 4.
A Faster Neural Engine for Smarter Features
The faster 16-core Neural Engine delivers powerful AI performance with incredible energy efficiency, complementing the neural accelerators in the CPU and GPU to make M5 fully optimized for AI workloads. For example, AI-powered features on Apple Vision Pro, like the ability to transform 2D photos into spatial scenes in the Photos app or generate a persona, operate at greater speed and with greater capability.
The Neural Engine in the M5 chip boosts performance for Apple intelligence on-device AI tools, such as Image Playground, which run faster, and Apple intelligence models work better thanks to the improved Neural Engine and unified memory in M5. Developers using Apple’s Core ML models framework will also see faster results.
More Memory Means More AI Power
The M5 chip has a unified memory bandwidth of 153 GB/s, which is almost 30% more than M4 and over twice that of M1. Its unified memory lets the entire chip use a single large pool of memory, so devices like the MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Apple Vision Pro can run larger AI models right on the device. This memory also powers the faster CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine, giving you better performance in apps, smoother graphics in creative tools and games, and quicker AI tasks with up to 32 GB of memory. M5 lets you run demanding apps like Adobe Photoshop and Final Cut Pro simultaneously, even while uploading large files to the cloud.
Apple Silicon’s Impact on the Environment
Apple 2030 is the company’s ambitious plan to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by the end of this decade, by reducing product emissions from its three biggest sources:
- Materials
- Electricity
- Transportation
The power-efficient performance of M5 helps the new 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Apple Vision Pro meet Apple’s high energy-efficiency standards and reduce total energy consumption over the products’ lifetimes.
Source: Apple unleashes M5, the next big leap in AI performance for Apple silicon
