Apple unveils new Mac mini and Mac Studio built for local AI

Apple ↘ 0.52% on Tuesday unveiled updated Mac mini and Mac Studio desktops, introducing its first 2-nanometer processor — the M6 — alongside the M5 Ultra, now the most powerful chip in the company's silicon lineup. The surprise launch, coming days before CEO Tim Cook hands the reins to John Ternus on September 1, positions both machines squarely at the growing market for local AI inference.apple+1

Both models are available for pre-order today and will begin shipping September 22.9to5mac+1

The M6: Apple's First 2nm Chip

The Mac mini with M6 marks a two-generation leap over its M4 predecessor, skipping the M5 entirely for the base desktop. The chip features a 12-core CPU — including Apple's new "super cores" for single-threaded tasks — a 12-core GPU with Neural Accelerators in every core, and a dual 16-core Neural Engine. Apple claims up to 4x faster AI performance and 2x faster graphics compared to the M4 Mac mini, with LLM prompt processing in LM Studio running up to 4.8x faster than the previous generation.apple+1

The M6 Mac mini starts at $899 with 16GB of unified memory and 256GB of storage — a $100 increase over the outgoing M4 model. The M5 Pro configuration starts at $1,699, also $100 more than its predecessor.9to5mac+1

Mac Studio Gets the M5 Ultra

The Mac Studio received an even larger upgrade, moving from M4 Max and M3 Ultra options to M5 Max and the new M5 Ultra. The latter uses a quad-die architecture — a first for Apple silicon — fusing two dual-die M5 Max chips via UltraFusion with 4.4TB/s of inter-die bandwidth. The result is up to a 36-core CPU, an 80-core GPU, and support for up to 512GB of unified memory with 1.2TB/s of bandwidth.engadget+1

The Mac Studio with M5 Max starts at $2,499, while the M5 Ultra configuration begins at $5,499.gizmodo+1

AI as the Driving Force

Apple is leaning heavily into local AI workloads. According to Ars Technica, the Mac mini and Mac Studio surged in popularity for distributed AI inference after macOS 26.2 enabled low-latency Thunderbolt 5 clustering via MLX last December. Both new models retain Thunderbolt 5 on their Pro and Ultra configurations, and Apple explicitly touts "always-on agentic computing" as a primary use case.arstechnica+1

"Whether it's being used as a home computer, powering a professional studio, or as an always-on agentic device, it's the little Mac that can do it all," said Johny Srouji, Apple's chief hardware officer.apple

The launches arrive amid a memory-chip shortage that has constrained Mac mini supply for months and contributed to the price increases across the lineup.bloomberg+1