Bloomberg: Apple silicon Mac Pro will replace AMD graphics with up to 128-core Apple GPU

The next Mac Pro update planned for 2022 will use next-generation Apple silicon providing up to 128 GPU cores fast enough to replace AMD parts used in the current Intel-based models.


STORY HIGHLIGHTS:

  • The new Mac Pro will be smaller and launch in 2022.
  • It would be driven by Apple’s advanced custom chips.
  • The chips may offer 64 and 128-core options.
  • The current Mac Pros have up to 28-core Intel Xeon chips.
  • Apple may also use its own graphics chips to replace AMD.

Mac Pro and Pro Display XDR

A smaller, beefier Mac Pro is coming

Apple has reportedly been working on an Apple silicon replacement for its Mac Pro desktop for some time now, according to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, with the upcoming computer described as being smaller than the current Intel-based workstation.

The new Mac Pro has been in the works for several months and is expected to look like a smaller version of the current design, which was launched in 2019.

Aside from a smaller footprint, the next Mac Pro will also be faster and have better graphics than the current models using Intel’s Xeon chips and dedicated AMD graphic cards.

2022 Mac Pro to use up to 40 CPU cores

That’s because the new Mac Pro will allegedly use next-generation Apple silicon with 32 high-performance cores and up to eight high-efficiency cores for a total of 40 processing cores.

Codenamed Jade 2C-Die and Jade 4C-Die, a redesigned Mac Pro is planned to come in 20 or 40 computing core variations, made up of 16 high-performance or 32 high-performance cores and four or eight high-efficiency cores.

By comparison, the current models have up to 28-core Xeon CPUs.

Even if we disregard the fact, just for a moment, that these upcoming Apple chips will run faster than the Intel parts they’ll be replacing, the substantial increase in the number of processing cores should make the new computer more performant than the old one.

Buyers of the high-end Mac Pro desktop planned for next year will likely have a choice of two processors that are either twice or four times as powerful as the new high-end MacBook Pro chip.

Keep in mind that Apple could change its plans in terms of features, pricing and timeframes.

Subscribe to iDB on YouTube

But what about Mac Pro’s AMD graphics?

The 2022 MacPro will also ditch AMD graphics in favor of Apple GPUs.

The current Intel-based Mac Pro can be configured with two Radeon Pro Vega II Duo graphics cards with 2x32GB of HBM2 memory each — a $10.800 value! Could Apple have developed a custom GPU card that trumpeted what AMD is currently offering for the Mac Pro?

The chips would also include either 64 core or 128 core options for graphics. The higher-end graphics chips would replace parts now made by Advanced Micro Devices Inc.

So replacing those dedicated AMD graphics cards with Apple’s own offerings sounds like a very tall order. On the other hand, Apple is a company that has managed to catch the industry on the wrong foot with the introduction of its M1 chip. Therefore, there’s no reason to doubt that the company’s semiconductor teams lack the expertise to beat AMD at its own game.

Apple is also working on new iMacs, MacBook Pros, MacBook Airs, Mac minis and more.