Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, ETR:APC) has unveiled a new artificial intelligence-enabled M4 chip which is a key feature of its new iPad Pro tablets launched on Tuesday, the first iPads to be added to its lineup in nearly two years.
The iPhone maker said the M4 has the company’s fastest-ever neural engine, capable of up to 38 trillion operations per second.
According to the company, this is faster than the neural processing unit of any AI PC available.
It added that the M4 chip also enables the thin design of the new iPad Pro, the thinnest Apple product to date with the 11-inch model just 5.3 mm thin and the 13-inch model being 5.1 mm thin.
AI-powered features include live captions for real-time audio, and the ability to search for objects in video and photos or for video editing software to isolate a subject from its background throughout a video.
“The power-efficient performance of M4, along with its new display engine, makes the thin design and game-changing display of iPad Pro possible, while fundamental improvements to the CPU, GPU, Neural Engine, and memory system make M4 extremely well suited for the latest applications leveraging AI,” said Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies.
In addition to the two new iPad Pros, Apple also announced the launch of two iPad Airs.
Shares of Apple were unmoved by the news at $181.50.