Apple's New 2-Nanometer Chip So Small Company Loses It During Keynote
Presenters spent 40 minutes describing the A20 Pro before admitting nobody could find it.
CUPERTINO, Calif. — Apple's showcase of its new A20 Pro processor, manufactured on a 2-nanometer process and described as "the most advanced chip we have ever made," was briefly derailed Tuesday when the demonstration unit could not be located on the stage.
"It's right here," said the presenter, gesturing toward a black acrylic pedestal lit from above, on which nothing visible sat. "You can't see it, but it's doing 60 trillion operations per second. Right now. On this pedestal. We think."
Backstage sources confirmed that the chip, roughly the size of a fingernail, had been placed on the pedestal that morning and that a stagehand had subsequently "wiped the pedestal down." A search of the venue by four engineers and a Roomba was inconclusive; the Roomba was later found to be running noticeably faster.
Apple said the incident did not affect the presentation, which continued as planned with slides describing the chip's 20 percent performance gain, 30 percent efficiency gain, and dedicated neural engine. "The chip is the story," a spokesperson said. "The chip being on the pedestal was never the story."
The company later confirmed the unit had been recovered from the cuff of a presenter's trousers, and said the episode had inspired a new "Find My Chip" feature, which will be available to enterprise customers in 2029.