Apple Expected to Announce Arm-Based Mac Plans at WWDC, Transition Away From Intel to Begin in 2021

Apple plans to announce its upcoming shift to Arm-based Macs at its virtual WWDC event later this month, giving developers several months to prepare for the transition, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

wwdc2020 1
The report claims that the first Arm-based Macs will be released in 2021, adding that Apple plans to eventually transition its entire lineup of Mac notebooks and desktops to the custom-designed processors. This lines up with a timeframe shared by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who said Apple plans to release several Arm-based Macs starting next year.

Arm-based Macs are expected to have several advantages over existing Intel-based Macs, including faster performance and reduced power consumption. Apple would also no longer be at the mercy of Intel's development schedule.

Gurman reiterates that Apple is developing at least three Mac processors, with the first based on the A14 chip in upcoming iPhone 12 models. TSMC is expected to manufacture the Mac processors based on its advanced 5nm process.

Apple's first Mac processor is expected to have 12 cores, including eight high-performance cores and at least four energy-efficient cores. Apple is said to be exploring Mac processors with more than 12 cores for further in the future, with the company apparently designing a second generation of Mac processors based on the A15 chip.

WWDC 2020 begins the week of June 22 as an online-only event. Apple has promised a virtual keynote, where it is expected to introduce iOS 14 and other new software, and seemingly its Arm-based Mac plans too.

Popular Stories

Verizon New

Verizon is Down: iPhones Show 'SOS' Mode Due to Network Outage [Resolved]

Wednesday January 14, 2026 10:18 am PST by
Verizon is experiencing a major outage across the U.S. today, with hundreds of thousands of customers reporting issues with the network on the website Downdetector. There are also complaints across Reddit and other social media platforms. iPhone users and others with Verizon service are generally unable to make phone calls, send text messages, or use data over 5G or LTE due to the outage....
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

New Leak Reveals iPhone 18 Pro Display Sizes, Under-Screen Face ID, and More

Wednesday January 14, 2026 7:09 am PST by
While the iPhone 18 Pro models are still around eight months away, a leaker has shared some alleged details about the devices. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo this week, the account Digital Chat Station said the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will have the same 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes as the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Consistent with previous...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Thursday January 15, 2026 10:56 am PST by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another eight months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we have recapped 12 features rumored for the iPhone 18 Pro models, as of January 2026: The same overall design is expected, with 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes, and a "plateau" housing three rear cameras Under-screen Face ID...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Adjusts Trade-In Values for iPhones, Macs, and More

Thursday January 15, 2026 11:19 am PST by
Apple today updated its trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models. Trade-ins can be completed on Apple's website, or at an Apple Store. The charts below provide an overview of Apple's current and previous trade-in values in the United States, according to the company's website. Most of the values declined slightly, but some of the Mac values increased. iPhone ...
maxresdefault

Google Gemini-Powered Siri Will Reportedly Have These 7 New Features

Tuesday January 13, 2026 7:52 pm PST by
Apple and Google this week announced that Gemini will help power a more personalized Siri, and The Information has provided more details. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. As soon as this spring, the report said the revamped version of Siri will be able to… Answer more factual/world knowledge questions in a conversational manner Tell more stories Provide...

Top Rated Comments

b13o0r12e3 Avatar
73 months ago
Rewind to this, Steve's words still preach a decade on

Score: 48 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spanky Deluxe Avatar
73 months ago
I hope they only do this for low end macs. I use too many virtual machines for this ever to work for me professionally.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TechGod Avatar
73 months ago
Wow its finally happening. Exciting times.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ruka.snow Avatar
73 months ago
Arm co-processors please. Intel chips are too good for so many tasks. I don’t want to have to drop macOS for Linux.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iRun26.2 Avatar
73 months ago
I wonder when my last purchase of a Apple laptop will be (right before they switch the MacBook Pros to ARM).
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
medee88 Avatar
73 months ago
I’m a bit worried that the MacOS will turn even more into a “walled garden” with the transition to ARM. I’m sure there’s some smart folks working on it though, but wonder if the Mac will become like the iPad and iPhone where it’s harder to install apps that don’t explicitly come from the App Store.

As a software developer, I do wonder how all the Unix/bsd subsystems will be affected, but only time will tell. Looking forward to hearing the announcement (if it’s a correct rumor of course).

Somehow I think Intel will be around for quite some time. I can’t really imagine an ARM Mac Pro.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)