Apple Unveils M5 Ultra Chip With 512GB Unified Memory, 4.3x AI Performance Gain

Apple (AAPL) announced specifications for its Mac Studio lineup featuring the M5 Ultra chip, set for release on September 22, 2026. The top-tier configuration packs a 36-core CPU (12 "super cores" and 24 performance cores), an 80-core GPU, a 32-core neural engine, and up to 512GB of unified memory with 1.2TB/s bandwidth. Apple claims peak AI compute performance up to 4.3 times higher than the M3 Ultra, despite the GPU core count remaining unchanged at 80. The gain stems from dedicated matrix hardware embedded in each GPU core rather than chip scaling. Multi-threaded CPU performance rises 1.3x over M3 Ultra. Apple positions the device for running large language models entirely on-device, targeting developers who prefer local inference over hosted APIs. Memory bandwidth jumped from roughly 819GB/s in prior Ultra chips to 1.2TB/s. Industry-wide DRAM prices have climbed for months, with memory now accounting for as much as 60% of some devices' bill of materials, potentially pressuring pricing on Apple's high-memory configurations.