Apple's M1 chip may be the new gold standard for computing power, but it's about to be surpassed by the upcoming M1X chip, according to a new leak from CPU Monkey.

According to this leak, the M1X will have 12 CPU cores, eight high-performance "Firestorm" cores and four efficient "Ice Storm" cores.

Compare this to the original M1 chip, which only had a total of 8 cores, with 4 performance and efficient cores evenly distributed. While the processing aspect alone is a significant upgrade, leaked benchmarks from the "pre-sample" indicate that the M1X will also have a 16-core GPU with 256 execution units. This is double the 128 units on the current M1.

The M1 chip already outperforms the competition and, according to our own tests, performs embarrassingly better than older MacBooks with Intel chips. If Apple can take advantage of the M1X's additional hardware in the same way, they will have a ridiculously powerful chip.

Of course, running a more powerful chip requires more actual power. But given that the M1 MacBook Pro's battery life is far superior to that of comparable Intel models, there's not much to worry about. With a large enough battery and enough chip optimization, the M1X MacBook should last a while.

The M1X is supposed to debut as part of the new MacBook Pro 16-inch 2021, which is expected to arrive later this year. Oddly enough, current word of mouth is that Apple will unveil this new machine with as little flair as possible, with a simple press release and a flashy launch event.

The new M1X chip could also be found in the new MacBook 14-inch 2021. This MacBook is also rumored to offer a new mini LED display.

Technology companies love to brag, and Apple is no exception. So you would think that if the M1X chip really is this much more powerful than the original M1, Tim Cook and friends would want to tell everyone about it themselves.

Then again, the M1X is not the only chip in the works. There are rumors that Apple is working on a 32-core CPU for the Mac Pro and a 32-core GPU for the higher-end MacBook. So the M1X may be just a temporary stop between the M1 and the much more powerful M2 chip.

Whatever happens, it is clear that Apple has big plans to expand its chip manufacturing efforts and continue to dominate the competition.