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The M3 gamble: How Apple's bet shaped its silicon future


Apple has kept a measured approach to updating its M-series chips, but the transition from M3 to M4 is happening at an unprecedented pace.

In addition, shrinking transistor sizes theoretically bring greater power efficiency and performance gains, allowing Apple to maintain its competitive edge over Intel and AMD, which were still on 5nm processes then. By going all-in on TSMC’s N3B process, Apple faced low yields, higher costs, and unexpected performance trade-offs — a stark contrast to the smooth transition seen between the M1 and M2. This aggressive push for early 3nm adoption was driven in part by competition, as other industry players like Intel, with the Xeon 6 and Core Ultra 200V Lunar Lake processors, and AMD, with the EPYC Turin, were also integrating 3nm technology.

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