Apple Inc. (AAPL, Financial) is advancing in the data center sector by developing high-performance processors aimed at enhancing its artificial intelligence (AI) services. This project, codenamed Baltra, is a collaboration between Apple and Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) and is projected to be completed by 2027.
The Baltra processors indicate Apple's ambitions to broaden its hardware capabilities within data centers, potentially beyond just AI support. These processors will incorporate AI accelerators designed by Broadcom, featuring specialized processing units like tensor cores and high-bandwidth memory stacks to boost AI computation efficiency, particularly in AI model training and workload inference.
Additionally, Apple is exploring server processor configurations with substantially increased core counts. There are rumors about models in development that double, quadruple, or even octuple the core count of the current M3 Ultra processor, which already leads the industry with 32 cores (24 performance and 8 efficiency cores).
Moreover, Apple is purportedly testing a variant of the M3 Ultra with a fourfold increase in GPU cores, potentially rivaling NVIDIA's upcoming GeForce RTX 5090. For its Mac product line, Apple plans to introduce new system-on-a-chip (SoC) designs, codenamed M5, M6 (Komodo), and M7 (Borneo), to power future iPads and Macs. There is also speculation around a high-end chip, codenamed Sotra.
