APPLE / SILICON DESIGN

Apple A17 Pro

Apple’s 3 nm iPhone 15 Pro SoC adds a six-core GPU and hardware ray tracing.

Image courtesy of Chipwise ·Used with permission

800 × 512 PX SOURCE / 100%

Drag to explore

Image courtesy of Chipwise ·Used with permission· Die photograph · Resized and format-converted for display; original image content and watermarks preserved.

Origin & contributions

Original source · Retrieved 2026-09-09

Chipwise / NanoPhysics · photographer · Included in this image

Image courtesy of Chipwise · Used with permission. Link the original Chipwise source page and retain its markings and credits. Permission reported by the Museum operator on 2026-09-09. Display resizing and format conversion only; no removal of annotations or watermarks. No onward redistribution or comparison-export licence is granted by the Museum.

Apple A17 Pro. See source caption; no chip layer inferred beyond source evidence

Source photography; preparation and visible markings are preserved. This photograph supplies no independently verified geometric measurements.

Original & higher resolution

Specifications

11 SOURCE-LINKED FIELDS

Identity & fabrication
Year	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2023-09-12 Year identifies first public introduction where a dated launch is available; see record notes for exceptions.
Process	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die
Foundry	Published analysisKurnal Insights Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2026-05-05 Independent analyst attribution.
CPU & clock domains
CPU	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die
Graphics
GPU cores	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die
Ray tracing	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die
AI & security
Neural Engine	Manufacturer / primary sourceApple Scope: silicon-die
Packaging, power & physical analysis
Reported die width	Published analysisKurnal Insights Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2026-05-05 Original analyst catalog value. Public entry gives dimensions but does not document calibration, die boundary convention, specimen provenance or uncertainty.
Reported die height	Published analysisKurnal Insights Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2026-05-05 Original analyst catalog value. Public entry gives dimensions but does not document calibration, die boundary convention, specimen provenance or uncertainty.
Reported die area	Published analysisKurnal Insights Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2026-05-05 Original analyst catalog value. Public entry gives dimensions but does not document calibration, die boundary convention, specimen provenance or uncertainty.
Verified die geometry	UnconfirmedApple Scope: silicon-die Source date: 2023-09-12 No source meeting calibrated geometry requirements accepted in this scout pass. Reported measurements, if present, remain separately labeled.

Source-linked recordEditorial update 2026-09-09

ARCHITECTURE → RTL → GDS

Design with this record

All design guides ↗

Start with documented specifications, then use the study prompts below. The prompts are engineering guidance, not a claim about this product’s private RTL or physical implementation.

Process: Apple ↗
Reported die area: Kurnal Insights ↗

Workload and traffic model

Build a traffic matrix across the documented CPU, graphics, AI and I/O engines. Model concurrent bursts, locality and worst-case response time at shared memory before choosing arbitration or buffering.

Contracts before RTL

Choose a representative producer/consumer path and specify acceptance, ordering, backpressure, outstanding capacity and reset recovery. Turn these contracts into assertions and test scenarios before optimizing the datapath.

A feasible physical plan

Obtain macro abstracts, pin maps, timing libraries and activity-based power estimates. Explore macro proximity, routing channels and power-grid reachability together. An annotated die photograph can suggest study questions, but cannot supply a netlist, PDK or signoff constraints.

Read the record in its physical scope.

Apple’s 3 nm iPhone 15 Pro SoC adds a six-core GPU and hardware ray tracing.

This record has identification and source evidence. A deeper architectural article has not yet been written. Visible patterns alone do not establish block functions, capacity or an internal protocol.

Follow the connections

2 SOURCE-LINKED RELATIONSHIPS

member ofApple A seriesproduct family

Product-series membership; does not assert shared masks or identical silicon.

Apple · Evidence

SuccessorApple A18 Prosilicon design

Apple compares the new A18 Pro with the preceding Pro generation.

Apple · Evidence

THE VISUAL EVIDENCE

Visual sources

4 DOCUMENTED SOURCES

Hosted image provenance · 4

Die photographHosted in Museum

Apple A17 Pro — Die photograph

Chipwise / NanoPhysics

1,200 × 790 pxTechnical archive / analysis

Apple A17 Pro. See source caption; no chip layer inferred beyond source evidence

View original die photo

Rights, provenance & link history

Rights status: PERMISSION GRANTED
Licence: Used with permission — attribution required ↗
Local hosting / thumbnails / hotlinking: Allowed / Allowed / Not enabled
Attribution: Image courtesy of Chipwise · Used with permission
Identity / confidence: matched / high
Evidence reviewed: 2026-09-09
Link checked: 2026-09-09 · ok · HTTP 200

Reuse evidence ↗

Access to a source does not grant permission to reproduce its images.

Die photographHosted in Museum

Apple A17 Pro — Die photograph

Chipwise / NanoPhysics

800 × 526 pxTechnical archive / analysis

Apple A17 Pro. Frontside die view, as identified by source

View original die photo

Rights, provenance & link history

Rights status: PERMISSION GRANTED
Licence: Used with permission — attribution required ↗
Local hosting / thumbnails / hotlinking: Allowed / Allowed / Not enabled
Attribution: Image courtesy of Chipwise · Used with permission
Identity / confidence: matched / high
Evidence reviewed: 2026-09-09
Link checked: 2026-09-09 · ok · HTTP 200

Reuse evidence ↗

Access to a source does not grant permission to reproduce its images.

Die photographHosted in Museum

Apple A17 Pro — Die photograph

Chipwise / NanoPhysics

800 × 512 pxTechnical archive / analysis

Apple A17 Pro. See source caption; no chip layer inferred beyond source evidence

View original die photo

Rights, provenance & link history

Rights status: PERMISSION GRANTED
Licence: Used with permission — attribution required ↗
Local hosting / thumbnails / hotlinking: Allowed / Allowed / Not enabled
Attribution: Image courtesy of Chipwise · Used with permission
Identity / confidence: matched / high
Evidence reviewed: 2026-09-09
Link checked: 2026-09-09 · ok · HTTP 200

Reuse evidence ↗

Access to a source does not grant permission to reproduce its images.

Die photographHosted in Museum

Apple A17 Pro — Die photograph

Chipwise / NanoPhysics

1,300 × 832 pxTechnical archive / analysis

Apple A17 Pro, source label TMQG36. Backside/deprocessed die view, as identified by source

View original die photo

Rights, provenance & link history

Rights status: PERMISSION GRANTED
Licence: Used with permission — attribution required ↗
Local hosting / thumbnails / hotlinking: Allowed / Allowed / Not enabled
Attribution: Image courtesy of Chipwise · Used with permission
Identity / confidence: matched / high
Evidence reviewed: 2026-09-09
Link checked: 2026-09-09 · ok · HTTP 200

Reuse evidence ↗

Access to a source does not grant permission to reproduce its images.

Source trail

Apple unveils iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ · Apple

Kurnal die catalog: Apple A17 Pro ↗ · Kurnal Insights

Apple unveils iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max ↗ · Apple

Apple A17 Pro — Chipwise image source ↗ · Chipwise / NanoPhysics

A17 Pro Fronstside die shot — Chipwise image source ↗ · Chipwise / NanoPhysics

Apple A17 Pro Backside die shot — Chipwise image source ↗ · Chipwise / NanoPhysics