The next few years are going to be interesting.
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The next few years are going to be interesting.
Let's say Apple releases an M6 MacBook Ultra that targets AI power users.
Now, forget for a moment your distain for the term "AI power user," lol, and perhaps for Apple, and speculate with me.
Because we have a big war of competing interests. Microsoft/OpenAI, Anthropic are pushing for centralized compute and proprietary cloud-based AI. Meta for cloud, too, but "open source" AI. Out of the giants, only Apple, really, are pushing for on-device AI
So, Apple goes all out in typical Apple fashion. First, and perhaps least obvious, is a touchscreen.
Not super important to my overall point but we're speculating and having fun.
Apples been doing R&D on AI that can make UIs on the fly—designing the best interface for the task you give it, or the task it's showing you how to complete. The Liquid Glass concepts starts making a bit more sense here, too. Liquid Glass for a "liquid" interface.
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I can hear the keynote now. Tim Cook on stage proclaiming that Apple talked to power users and what they really want are private, secure models that run locally.
They spend 20 minutes talking about some custom enclave for AI to run. Trusted Execution Environments (TEE) is a new buzzword, so, something like that.
Then, Apple talks software
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I can hear the keynote now. Tim Cook on stage proclaiming that Apple talked to power users and what they really want are private, secure models that run locally.
They spend 20 minutes talking about some custom enclave for AI to run. Trusted Execution Environments (TEE) is a new buzzword, so, something like that.
Then, Apple talks software
This is where maybe my speculation goes off the rails. And again, not wishing for all this to happen, just speculating.
At first I thought maybe Apple would release its own LLM/Agentic model. But that's exactly what they've been resisting. They don't like AI's spontaneity.
So what do they fill this new M6 enclave with, if not a proprietary model? Other companies' AI.
Apple launches an AI App Store for localized AI products.
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This is where maybe my speculation goes off the rails. And again, not wishing for all this to happen, just speculating.
At first I thought maybe Apple would release its own LLM/Agentic model. But that's exactly what they've been resisting. They don't like AI's spontaneity.
So what do they fill this new M6 enclave with, if not a proprietary model? Other companies' AI.
Apple launches an AI App Store for localized AI products.
All these loose AI models popping up and going viral every so often now have a device to optimize for and an audience to target.
Oohhhh they'd resist at first. But if that MB Ultra becomes the defacto AI hardware for both/either consumer and business, then theyll eventually play along.
AGAIN, not wishing, speculating. I feel a tomato at my head at any moment. lol.
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All these loose AI models popping up and going viral every so often now have a device to optimize for and an audience to target.
Oohhhh they'd resist at first. But if that MB Ultra becomes the defacto AI hardware for both/either consumer and business, then theyll eventually play along.
AGAIN, not wishing, speculating. I feel a tomato at my head at any moment. lol.
So, this is where it gets sticky, right? Let's say I'm even half correct. That Apple comes out with hardware optimized for local AI models.
That potentially could be a significant blow to the cloud-tethered business model virtually every other giant is chasing.
If it were up to Google, we'd all be on chromebooks. Everyone is hyping AI, none of them are attempting to be the defacto AI hardware.
Because the money is in the residuals baby! Gotta collect those rents!
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So, this is where it gets sticky, right? Let's say I'm even half correct. That Apple comes out with hardware optimized for local AI models.
That potentially could be a significant blow to the cloud-tethered business model virtually every other giant is chasing.
If it were up to Google, we'd all be on chromebooks. Everyone is hyping AI, none of them are attempting to be the defacto AI hardware.
Because the money is in the residuals baby! Gotta collect those rents!
If this move by Apple is as obvious as I think it is, then the other tech giants are already planning their countermove.
And, idk, man. If my business relied on wood pulp, and there was a way to make hemp, my number 1 competitor, completely illegal, maybe I try that?
And maybe I take my shot *before* my competitor goes to market.
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If this move by Apple is as obvious as I think it is, then the other tech giants are already planning their countermove.
And, idk, man. If my business relied on wood pulp, and there was a way to make hemp, my number 1 competitor, completely illegal, maybe I try that?
And maybe I take my shot *before* my competitor goes to market.
Apple is a hardware company. But their biggest competitor isn't other hardware companies, it's the cloud. It's centralized compute.
If AI does in fact become even a fraction of the game changer other companies claim, then Apple can't afford to let the cloud eat its lunch. Though, I don't think Apple is completely sold on this AI future.
So Apple has a conundrum here. Sit it out, risk more momentum towards cloud compute. Or go all in, risk solidifying something that otherwise would die.
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Apple is a hardware company. But their biggest competitor isn't other hardware companies, it's the cloud. It's centralized compute.
If AI does in fact become even a fraction of the game changer other companies claim, then Apple can't afford to let the cloud eat its lunch. Though, I don't think Apple is completely sold on this AI future.
So Apple has a conundrum here. Sit it out, risk more momentum towards cloud compute. Or go all in, risk solidifying something that otherwise would die.
I think Apple is going all in. The MacBook Neo is a signal that they're attacking this from both ends. While everyone else is focused on data centers, Apple uses a $600 MacBook to gain market share. Maybe even eat at some of Chromebook's slice of the pie.
On the other end, the MB Ultra shows the world that the future of computing is still local.
*Pulls out voice recorder* "Sticker idea: Keep Compute Local"
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I think Apple is going all in. The MacBook Neo is a signal that they're attacking this from both ends. While everyone else is focused on data centers, Apple uses a $600 MacBook to gain market share. Maybe even eat at some of Chromebook's slice of the pie.
On the other end, the MB Ultra shows the world that the future of computing is still local.
*Pulls out voice recorder* "Sticker idea: Keep Compute Local"
@fromjason nice thread, thank you!
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@fromjason "coffeeshop rugged" xD
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I think Apple is going all in. The MacBook Neo is a signal that they're attacking this from both ends. While everyone else is focused on data centers, Apple uses a $600 MacBook to gain market share. Maybe even eat at some of Chromebook's slice of the pie.
On the other end, the MB Ultra shows the world that the future of computing is still local.
*Pulls out voice recorder* "Sticker idea: Keep Compute Local"
@fromjason Okay maybe you do need a podcast.
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@fromjason I just fail to imagine why you would need a local model in a secure enclave…? It’s local. The moment you would feed it environment pieces like your file system to work on things, your enclave wouldn’t make much sense anymore.
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I think Apple is going all in. The MacBook Neo is a signal that they're attacking this from both ends. While everyone else is focused on data centers, Apple uses a $600 MacBook to gain market share. Maybe even eat at some of Chromebook's slice of the pie.
On the other end, the MB Ultra shows the world that the future of computing is still local.
*Pulls out voice recorder* "Sticker idea: Keep Compute Local"
For the newly released M5 Pro and Max, AI is already making the press release headline.
This reads less like a make-the-stock-happy announcement like Genmoji, and more like a serious bridge to a real strategic destination:
Apple is making the first* high end consumer AI laptop that makes cloud computing a secondary mechanism.
*edit: let's say first "mass market"
Apple introduces MacBook Pro with all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max
Apple announced the latest 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro with the all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max.
Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com)
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@fromjason I just fail to imagine why you would need a local model in a secure enclave…? It’s local. The moment you would feed it environment pieces like your file system to work on things, your enclave wouldn’t make much sense anymore.
@frumble oooo yeah so I don't want to get too technical as I would be out of my depth very fast lol.
But I think Apple will pitch this enclave for a couple reasons
First, just a way to keep data generated by AI private, away from a compromised system and from Apple themselves. This is how they pitched finger/Face ID. IDevices are integrated deeply with iCloud. This enclave was a way to show this data is away from that.
Also...
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@frumble oooo yeah so I don't want to get too technical as I would be out of my depth very fast lol.
But I think Apple will pitch this enclave for a couple reasons
First, just a way to keep data generated by AI private, away from a compromised system and from Apple themselves. This is how they pitched finger/Face ID. IDevices are integrated deeply with iCloud. This enclave was a way to show this data is away from that.
Also...
Our computers have our data but an LLM would have synthesized data. For example, our computer might have an email confirmation for purchased M&Ms, a poem about hot fudge, and a photo eating a Hershey's bar. But an LLM could infer the user likes chocolate. That personal data is different and in the enclave. Maybe that's a terrible example or even reasoning lol.
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@fromjason Okay maybe you do need a podcast.
@nannnsss haha thank you. I looked at podcast mics the other day
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For the newly released M5 Pro and Max, AI is already making the press release headline.
This reads less like a make-the-stock-happy announcement like Genmoji, and more like a serious bridge to a real strategic destination:
Apple is making the first* high end consumer AI laptop that makes cloud computing a secondary mechanism.
*edit: let's say first "mass market"
Apple introduces MacBook Pro with all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max
Apple announced the latest 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro with the all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max.
Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com)
(Still ranting
) Rewind 6 years. Apple never releases the M Series chip. Macs and MacBooks sort of just limp along, taking whatever dogshit gains Intel throws at them. Four years later, 2 years after ChatGPT went viral, DeepSeek is released. But this time, the markets aren't so freaked out. Yeah, you can run it locally, but it's not just 3 $600 Mac minis. It's [insert PC build here so I don't upset my DIY friends]. Which is fine, but local models are just that much less compelling.
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For the newly released M5 Pro and Max, AI is already making the press release headline.
This reads less like a make-the-stock-happy announcement like Genmoji, and more like a serious bridge to a real strategic destination:
Apple is making the first* high end consumer AI laptop that makes cloud computing a secondary mechanism.
*edit: let's say first "mass market"
Apple introduces MacBook Pro with all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max
Apple announced the latest 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro with the all-new M5 Pro and M5 Max.
Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com)
@fromjason Isn’t Nvidia doing something similar with Nemotron? Albeit you can’t lug a GPU rig to the coffee shop, so they wouldn’t really be competing in the same space
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(Still ranting
) Rewind 6 years. Apple never releases the M Series chip. Macs and MacBooks sort of just limp along, taking whatever dogshit gains Intel throws at them. Four years later, 2 years after ChatGPT went viral, DeepSeek is released. But this time, the markets aren't so freaked out. Yeah, you can run it locally, but it's not just 3 $600 Mac minis. It's [insert PC build here so I don't upset my DIY friends]. Which is fine, but local models are just that much less compelling.
The M-series breathed new life into the non-gaming, high-end laptop market. That's important beyond just nice to have. The M series is single-handedly holding back a thin-client renaissance.
In 2026, in a sans-M Series world, centralized compute by way of premium-material ChromeBooks, looks like the future of computing.
None of this to say we should all go out and buy an M5 MBP tonight to support decentralized compute. Go buy a Framework PC, same idea. Just that this is a fragile future.
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@fromjason Isn’t Nvidia doing something similar with Nemotron? Albeit you can’t lug a GPU rig to the coffee shop, so they wouldn’t really be competing in the same space
@kmck they are begrudgingly, I think. Nvidia's business goal is to capture those already interested in on-device AI, but not generate new interest.
Nvidia is like a reverse Microsoft, they're a chip company with AI software partners. They won't do anything to hurt those partners' business model.
Microsoft is a software company with hardware partners. MS has its Surface line, but it's careful not to harm Dell's business.
