Apple switches to its own chips for Mac computers as it adds features, privacy controls

Apple on Monday said it will switch to its own chips for its Mac computers, saying the first machines will ship this year and ending a nearly 15-year reliance on Intel to supply processors for its flagship laptops and desktop.

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said it marked the beginning of a major new era for a product line that powered the company’s rise in the 1980s and its resurgence in the late 1990s.

“Silicon is at the heart of our hardware,” Cook said during a virtual keynote address recorded at the company’s Cupertino, California headquarters for its annual developer conference. “Having a world class silicon design team is a game changer.”