OpenAI and other AI labs bought tens of thousands of Mac minis for training computer-use agents.
The most powerful models are sold out due to a chip shortage.
Apple's Mac revenue rose 29% to $10.4 billion.
What happened
OpenAI and other AI labs have bought tens of thousands of Mac minis and Mac Studios to train computer-use agents that handle multi-step tasks autonomously. The most powerful models have been sold out for months due to a memory chip shortage, and OpenAI wants more.
Why it matters
These agents could automate complex workflows, and Apple's unified memory architecture makes Macs well-suited for long-running AI workloads. Apple's Mac revenue jumped nearly 29% to $10.4 billion in the June quarter, partly fueled by this demand.
What to watch
Open-source software Exo lets users link multiple Macs into a cluster to run large models locally. Peter Voell, formerly on OpenAI's computing infrastructure team, is building an Apple-based cloud service called Mount Thor.
Ask the AI about this article →
The surge in Mac mini purchases by AI labs highlights a shift in how AI infrastructure is being built. While Nvidia's GPUs dominate training, Apple's unified memory architecture offers an efficient option for inference and running agents. The shortage of high-end models could spur innovation in alternative setups, such as clustering Macs with Exo or using cloud services like Mount Thor. As AI agents become more common, the demand for such hardware is likely to grow, potentially benefiting Apple's Mac sales further.
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