Thought Leadership
Apple is planning a return to the server market for 2029: A new enterprise server with M8 Ultra chips is intended to serve the booming market for AI developers.
Comeback in the server market after nearly two decades
According to a report by The Information, Apple is working on its own AI server for enterprise customers. The system is said to be based on the manufacturer’s powerful M-series Ultra processors, which to date have primarily been used in Mac desktops. A planned market launch in 2029 would mark the group’s first dedicated server product since the retirement of the Xserve in January 2011. Two system configurations are reportedly planned, equipped with either two or four of the future M8 Ultra chips. The project was launched about a year ago and supported by new Apple CEO John Ternus – at the time still in his role as head of hardware engineering, before succeeding Tim Cook on September 1, 2026.
High Mac demand by AI developers as a driver
The move comes against the backdrop of sharply rising demand for Mac hardware in the AI industry. Developers and tech companies are increasingly resorting to the Mac mini and Mac Studio to execute AI workloads. According to reports, OpenAI, for example, has purchased tens of thousands of Mac minis and Mac Studios to train AI agents via reinforcement learning. The AI company Anthropic is also renting Mac minis via Amazon Web Services. The high popularity of the specialized M chips for such computations has apparently encouraged Apple to develop its own server solution for data centers.
Possible Nvidia cooperation and supply chain hurdles
For the networking of the M8 processors, Apple is reportedly considering the use of data center networking technology from Nvidia. Executives from both companies are holding talks on how Apple could leverage Nvidia’s “NVLink Fusion” technology for its AI initiative. However, the project is said to be not yet final and could be adjusted during development or implemented without Nvidia components. Furthermore, like the entire IT industry, the endeavor faces supply chain challenges: Due to the global construction boom of AI data centers, the shortage of memory chips persists, which is already leading to noticeable price increases for numerous consumer electronics products and smartphones.
(Editorial Team)
