- AWS protects rare Mac Studios while regular Apple customers remain completely locked out
- Apple’s hidden 256GB Mac Studio setup unexpectedly appeared via Amazon cloud infrastructure
- AI developers depleted Mac Studio inventory by running local language models on expensive Apple hardware
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has acquired a significant number of Apple’s Mac Studio computers, a workstation-quality desktop computer that mainstream consumers are currently unable to purchase due to the current RAM shortage.
According to Apple, potential buyers of this device will have to wait more than two months before it arrives, as AI enthusiasts have been depleting the available stock to run local language models like OpenClaw, further limiting the already scarce supply.
Apple currently sells Mac Studio with a maximum of 96 GB of unified memory to regular customers; However, AWS has announced that it now offers a cloudy M3 Ultra configuration with 256GB of unified memory, a specific configuration that does not appear as an option on Apple’s consumer website.
AWS takes advantage of the low supply of Mac Studio
The Mac Studio that AWS has assembled and stacked features Apple’s most powerful M3 Ultra system on a chip.
The Cloudy M3 Ultra runs on real Mac Studios that includes a 28-core CPU, a 60-core GPU, and a 32-core Neural Engine.
AWS recommends its Macs in the cloud as an ideal platform for developers to build and test applications for all Apple operating systems.
This includes support for visionOS, the software that powers Apple’s underappreciated Vision Pro virtual reality headset.
Apple allows users to create and run macOS virtual devices, but only on Apple hardware and with only two virtual machines allowed per host device.
The company also restricts the use of its virtual machines to four specific purposes, including software development, testing, and personal non-commercial use.
Cloud access has limited availability
Availability of these high-end Macs is limited to just two AWS regions, US East and US West in Oregon, leaving customers elsewhere without access to the cloud.
Users in other parts of the world who want a cloudy Mac but need lower latency will have to endure the local experience of waiting for the hardware to appear.
After managing to purchase several of Apple’s most attractive Mac Studio, AWS is turning around and offering them as cloud computing instances to developers who need Apple’s ecosystem for their work.
Whether this deal makes financial sense compared to simply waiting for the two-plus month shipping delay depends entirely on how urgently a developer needs access to Apple’s latest hardware.
For those who can’t wait, AWS has become the only game in town to get M3 Ultra computing power before the summer ends.
This temporary monopoly carries whatever price the cloud giant decides to charge.
AWS has not yet added the new M3-based Mac instances to its EC2 listings, so pricing is still unknown.
It’s also not clear yet whether Amazon has changed its focus from offering only bare metal Macs to providing macOS virtual machines.
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