The Mac Pro nearly got a chip twice as powerful as the M3 Ultra and a new Intel model, until Apple cancelled both

Q: Which unreleased Mac Pro models (codenames) were in development and what chips were they planned to use?

Apple had two unreleased Mac Pro models in development: codename J190, which was an M3 Ultra-powered Mac Pro. The other was codename J170, an Intel-based Mac Pro intended to address specific use cases such as PCIe graphics card support.

Q: Would the cancelled Extreme chips have made the Mac Pro cost more than $10,000 before upgrades, per the article?

Yes. The article says Apple abandoned the Extreme chips partly because of concerns that demand for a machine likely to cost well over $10,000 before upgrades would be too limited.

Q: What does the report say about the likelihood of the Mac Pro returning in the future?

The report says Gurman does not expect the Mac Pro to return anytime soon, if ever. Instead, Apple is expected to focus on refreshing the Mac Studio with an M5 Ultra chip.

Apple scrapped the M2 and M3 Extreme chips, along with two unreleased Mac Pro models, before officially discontinuing the machine in March this year.

VIEW GALLERY - 3

Hassam Nasir

Tech Reporter

Published Jul 20, 2026 8:40 AM CDT

1 minute & 30 seconds read time

TL;DR: Apple cancelled planned M2/M3 Extreme chips and two unreleased Mac Pro models, abandoning processors that would have doubled M3 Ultra's 32‑core CPU and 80‑core GPU due to high costs and limited demand for >$10,000 machines. The Mac Pro was discontinued in March, with Apple focusing on the more affordable Mac Studio instead.

Voice: Hassam NasirSpeed

0:00 / 2:50

Apple discontinued the Mac Pro in March, ending a 20-year run for the machine that once defined the company's professional desktop lineup. Yet a new Bloomberg report from Mark Gurman reveals that the Mac Pro's fate could have looked very different.

According to the report, Apple developed multiple unreleased M2 Extreme and M3 Extreme chips, along with Mac Pro hardware built around them, before ultimately cancelling both projects. These processors were designed to sit above the Ultra tier, offering roughly twice the CPU and GPU core counts of their Ultra counterparts.

An M3 Extreme, for instance, would have doubled the M3 Ultra's 32-core CPU and 80-core GPU. The chips were ultimately abandoned due to high production costs and concerns that demand for a machine likely to cost well over $10,000 before upgrades would be too limited.

The Mac Pro nearly got a chip twice as powerful as the M3 Ultra and a new Intel model, until Apple cancelled both 1

VIEW GALLERY - 3 IMAGES

Gurman's report also reveals that Apple had two unreleased Mac Pro models in development. The first, codenamed J190, was an M3 Ultra-powered Mac Pro originally intended to launch alongside the M3 Ultra Mac Studio in early 2025, but it was cancelled.

The second, codenamed J170, was an Intel-based Mac Pro that remained in development even as Apple was well into its transition to Apple Silicon. Gurman says it was intended to address specific use cases, likely related to PCIe graphics card support, something Apple Silicon does not natively accommodate.

The Mac Pro nearly got a chip twice as powerful as the M3 Ultra and a new Intel model, until Apple cancelled both 3

In the end, the Mac Pro's fate was sealed by the success of the far more affordable Mac Studio. When Apple launched the first Apple Silicon Mac Pro in 2023 with the same M2 Ultra chip found in the Mac Studio, it became difficult for most buyers to justify paying roughly twice the price for a larger tower whose main advantage was PCIe expansion.

Frequently Asked Questions

TweakBot answers common questions about this news using TweakTown's own coverage from this page and related content from our archive. Tap a question to reveal the answer, or type your own below.

Question #1

Which unreleased Mac Pro models (codenames) were in development and what chips were they planned to use?

Question #2

Would the cancelled Extreme chips have made the Mac Pro cost more than $10,000 before upgrades, per the article?

Question #3

What does the report say about the likelihood of the Mac Pro returning in the future?

Have a question not listed here? Ask below and TweakBot will answer it.

Without an Extreme chip to justify its premium, the Mac Pro no longer had a clear place in Apple's lineup. Gurman does not expect the machine to return anytime soon, if ever. Instead, Apple is expected to refresh the Mac Studio with an M5 Ultra chip as early as this fall.