Apple M1 chip revealed - First Apple Silicon for Mac

Today the Apple M1 chip was revealed as the first Apple Silicon for Mac. This desktop chip will work with unified memory architecture, an integrated GPU, and its own neural engine. Apple described this architecture as "the first personal computing chip built using industry-leading 5nm technology." This chip will be part of the larger Apple Silicon collection, running multiple sorts of devices in the next few years.

The Apple M1 chip works with 4 high-performance cores, each of which is what Apple described as the "world's fastest." These high-performance cores work with ultra-wide execution architecture as well as 192KB instruction cache. These high-performance cores include 128KN data cache and a shared 12MB L2 cache.

There'll be four high-efficiency cores as well, with wide execution architecture, 128KB instruction cache, 64KB data cache, and shared 4MB L2 cache.

Apple included Secure Enclave abilities in this chip, meaning it'll have security functionality similar to that of the iPhone and iPad. That's device-centric security that'll allow fingerprint, password, and face-ID login and protection.

The M1 chip works with Thunderbolt / USB 4 controller technology for next-generation connectivity. This chip works with machine learning accelerators and an advanced image signal processor.

We'll learn a whole lot more about this M1 chip in the near future. Stay tuned to this article for an expanded set of notes as we get a closer look at Apple's deep-dive information!