Apple’s M5 Chip Boosts Graphics and On‑Device AI Across iPad Pro, MacBook Pro and Vision Pro

Apple has introduced its new M5 system-on-chip across updated iPad Pro and MacBook Pro models, and for the first time, the Apple Vision Pro headset. The M5 focuses heavily on graphics and AI performance while continuing Apple’s move to a third‑generation 3nm manufacturing process.

Key upgrades highlighted by Apple include a redesigned 10‑core GPU architecture that delivers up to four times the peak GPU compute of the M4, improved memory bandwidth, and GPU‑core “Neural Accelerators” to accelerate AI workloads alongside the chip’s 16‑core Neural Engine.

• Process: third‑generation 3nm
• CPU: up to a 10‑core CPU (6 efficiency + up to 4 performance cores); some iPad Pro SKUs ship with a 9‑core CPU
• GPU: 10‑core GPU on full configurations; promises up to 4x peak GPU compute vs M4, up to 30% faster graphics, and up to 45% uplift in ray‑traced apps
• Memory bandwidth: up to 153GB/s (improved over base M4)
• AI: 16‑core Neural Engine plus GPU‑core Neural Accelerators for faster on‑device AI
• Vision Pro: higher sustained performance — Apple says the headset can hit 120Hz and render ~10% more pixels on M5

One notable wrinkle: smaller‑storage iPad Pro models (256GB and 512GB) use a 9‑core CPU variant, while 1TB and 2TB models get the full 10‑core CPU and GPU. Apple also claims “up to 15%” faster multithreaded CPU performance compared with the M4, though real‑world results will depend on workloads and memory configurations.

Apple’s emphasis on GPU improvements and memory bandwidth suggests users who do creative work, gaming, or AI‑driven tasks will see the biggest benefits. The inclusion of dedicated Neural Accelerators in each GPU core is a new architectural choice intended to speed Apple Intelligence features and other on‑device AI processing.

We’ll need independent benchmarks and hands‑on tests to confirm how the M5 performs across different form factors and workloads, especially for CPU‑heavy tasks. For now, Apple’s upgrades continue the trend of focusing on graphics and on‑device AI capabilities.

Further reading: Engadget coverage • Apple Newsroom

Discussion: Do you think the M5’s GPU and on‑device AI upgrades are enough to justify upgrading your device?