The M2 Extreme was earlier reported to be in development for the Mac Pro, and it would have been Apple’s most powerful custom silicon with up to a 48-core CPU and 152-core GPU, but it had to be scrapped as the company encountered numerous problems. Fortunately, there is a chance for its successors to be found in Apple’s future Mac Pro models thanks to TSMC’s 3DFabric technology.
Apple is said to be testing TSMC’s 3DFabric chips through a trial production, and if successor, it may lead to the launch of the M3 Extreme and future SoCs
We already reported yesterday that both Apple and AMD were impressed with TSMC’s 3DFabric technology, though the first family of chips may be found in a future MacBook instead of a Mac Studio or a Mac Pro. However, according to a small discussion that happened between Patently Apple and YouTuber Vadim Yuryev, there is a possibility that in 2025, an M3 Extreme will materialize thanks to this technology.
For those that do not know, TSMC’s 3DFabric technology allows the development of a series of chips on an interconnected die. This will give companies like Apple immense freedom in designing and scaling future chips, which can only mean that it might become simpler for the technology giant to integrate multiple chipsets on a single die to create one powerful Apple Silicon. With the M1 Ultra and M2 Ultra, a process called ‘UltraFusion’ combined two M1 Max and M2 Max chipsets to create a single solution.
Wow thought it would be sooner than that! I thought M3 Extreme in 2025
— Vadim Yuryev (@VadimYuryev) July 31, 2023
It is possible Apple was forced to abandon work on the M2 Extreme because the performance scaling of two M2 Ultra SoCs on a single die was poor, while power consumption spiked, resulting in diminishing returns per watt. However, the new 3DFabric technology should make it simpler for multiple chipsets to communicate with each other as part of an integrated system.
Still, just because the benefits of TSMC’s new 3D chip-stacking technology exist does not mean Apple will not encounter problems with the M3 Extreme or M4 Extreme. As stated above, the report mentioned that the first chip is expected to be found in a MacBook, a product that might serve as a test bed for Apple to develop ever more powerful variants. Our assumptions do not mean the California-based tech behemoth is actually working on such chips, but it does make for an interesting discussion.
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
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