Apple is reportedly set to release a new chip, the M4, alongside a new production of iMacs, MacBooks, and a new Mac Mini. The M4 will be AI-centric and is expected to be released later this year. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company might talk up the M4 chip during its WWDC 2024 conference.

The M4 chip will reportedly last through 2025 and will likely be used in new MacBook Airs. The Cupertino company is trying to make up for sluggish Mac sales from 2022 to 2023, and the competition in the CPU market is heating up. Intel has started the ball rolling with its Meteor Lake series of mobile chips, and Qualcomm is set to release Snapdragon X Elite, its ARM-based CPU, in June.

The M4 chip will likely have a neural processing component, which Apple has not needed to talk up until now. The company started mentioning it with the latest MacBook Air release, and it seems it will only get louder from here. However, the advent of the “AI PC” seemed extra premature when considering all the new chips coming out that claim they’ll have the capacity for on-device AI.

The new M4 MacBooks are expected to look and function the same as the M3, which looked and functioned exactly like the M2. The constant stream of new chips is causing weariness among consumers, and it remains to be seen if Apple can make up for sluggish Mac sales with the new M4 chip.

Overall, the CPU market is heating up, and Apple is trying to keep up with the competition. However, the constant emphasis on AI capabilities may be a marketing ploy, and it remains to be seen if the M4 chip will live up to its hype.