Apple may have accidentally tipped its hand on the next wave of Mac silicon.
References to M5 Max and even M5 Ultra chips have been spotted in the latest Apple software beta, hinting that new high-end Macs could be closer than expected.
The discovery comes from code found in the iOS 26.3 beta, first spotted by developer Nicolás Alvarez. Buried in the update are references to two unreleased chips labelled H17C (T6051) and H17D (T6052). Apple’s internal naming conventions are fairly consistent, making the clues here hard to ignore.
The “17” identifier places these chips firmly in the M5 family, while the letters do the rest of the talking. Apple typically uses “C” for Max chips and “D” for Ultra. This strongly suggests these entries correspond to the M5 Max and M5 Ultra. By comparison, the existing MacBook Pro M5 chip carries the identifier H17G.
What’s notably missing is a clear reference to an M5 Pro chip, which would usually carry an “S” designation. That could mean Apple simply hasn’t included it in this beta, or it may be changing how it labels Pro-tier silicon. Either way, the presence of Max and Ultra references is the more interesting takeaway.
An M5 Max MacBook Pro has long been expected, but the mention of M5 Ultra raises bigger questions.
Apple has never shipped a MacBook Pro with an Ultra chip; historically, those SoCs have been reserved for desktop machines like the Mac Studio. That makes a new Mac Studio with M5 Ultra feel like the safer bet. This is especially true after Apple skipped an M4 Ultra entirely, leaving the current Studio with mismatched M4 Max and M3 Ultra options.
As for performance, early expectations point to modest but meaningful gains rather than a full redesign. Reports suggest up to a 14-core CPU for M5 Pro, 16 cores for M5 Max, and GPUs scaling up to 40 cores on the Max tier. If an Ultra chip does arrive, it would likely double that performance again.
Nothing here confirms an imminent launch, but Apple’s own code is rarely this specific by accident. Whether it’s a refreshed MacBook Pro, a new Mac Studio, or both, the M5 family — Ultra included — looks increasingly ready to step into the spotlight.
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