In A Major Plot Twist, Intel Could Soon Be Making Chips For Apple...

This wasn't on my 2025 bingo card. But then neither was the Nvidia collab.

Well, now this is unexpected. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has just revealed that Intel is expected to begin shipping Apple's M-series processors in 2027. This would mark a huge comeback of the partnership between the two companies, which Apple started to move away from in 2020.

Intel used to make chips for Apple, well, Apple used to use Intel CPUs, but those processors were based on x86 architecture—and, I'm sorry to say, were nowhere near as impressive as Apple's own M-series chips.

Apple's move to making its own chips signified an end to its partnership with Intel, but also the beginning of a new era, one where the M-series consistently obliterates its competitors in performance-per-watt.

Apple doesn't seem to be changing its mind where the M-series is concerned, though. This new partnership wouldn't involve switching back to an Intel processor, but rather it'd involve Intel manufacturing Apple M-series chips in its own foundries. Kuo revealed that Apple plans to use Intel's 18AP process node for this.

Ming-Chi Kuo teased that Apple's plan is for Intel to make its lowest-end M-series processor. Kuo didn't reveal whether this means the M7 or the M6, but the timeline points more toward the M7.

Intel expected to begin shipping Apple’s lowest-end M processor as early as 2027There have long been market rumors that Intel could become an advanced-node foundry supplier to Apple, but visibility around this had remained low. My latest industry surveys, however, indicate that…November 28, 2025

These chips would then end up in future MacBook Airs and some iPhones. This is in line with what Apple currently does with them. However, Kuo says that a new, more affordable MacBook might be on the horizon in 2026, one equipped with an iPhone-class CPU.

That sounds like it'd potentially reduce the demand for those Intel-made chips—but Kuo still expects some decent production volume in the 15 to 20 million units range.

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Source: PC Gamer