Apple faces revenue losses in local AI due to Mac Studio delay

Apple may face revenue losses in the local AI solutions segment due to a delayed launch of the updated Mac Studio with the M5 Ultra chip and a shortage of high-bandwidth memory.

Demand for powerful systems to run large language models (LLMs) continues to grow, and the Mac Studio lineup previously gained popularity by combining high performance with a compact form factor. However, the current memory market situation complicates the company's plans.

According to sources, the updated Mac Studio with the M5 Ultra is now expected no earlier than the fourth quarter of 2026, despite earlier talk of a sooner launch. Amid this, users have lost alternatives: configurations based on the M3 Ultra and M4 Max are essentially sold out or unavailable.

As a result, the only relatively accessible option remains the MacBook Pro with the M5 Max chip, but its capabilities are limited by a smaller unified memory capacity, which is critical for working with large AI models.

A separate issue is the DRAM shortage. Forecasts suggest manufacturers will meet only about 60% of demand by 2027. Even with active procurement, Apple may lack the resources to equip its most powerful devices, which could potentially offer up to 512 GB of unified memory.

The market also lacks full alternatives. For instance, professional graphics cards like the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 offer significantly less video memory, limiting their use for local LLMs. Even considering more affordable solutions, such as the MacBook Pro with 128 GB of memory, their capabilities might not suffice for effectively handling large models. This makes the situation particularly challenging for users focused on local AI deployment.

Overall, the delay of the Mac Studio and memory shortage could lead to Apple temporarily ceding part of the market in the fast-growing local AI computing segment until it can offer a new generation of powerful workstations.