A "foldable iPad Pro"? Here's what the latest leak claims
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
Could Apple's next iPad Pro feature a folding design? After more display specs leaked on Monday, the long-rumored folding iPad may still be in the works at Apple.
Weibo-based tipster Digital Chat Station — who has a record of leaking information about foldable tech — posted on the Chinese social media site that a prototype for a foldable 18.8-inch iPad includes an under-display FaceID sensor. Here's the full posting:
"Guoguo also has a Foldable iPad Pro, the engineering version has an 18.8-inch screen and uses a metal meta-lens. It mainly integrates Face ID Rx and Tx for under-screen 3D face recognition. Are you interested in a foldable tablet?"
If true, this update would confirm that Apple is still working on a foldable iPad. However, the post didn't go into further detail about the prototype, but this is not the first we've heard about it.
Rumors about a folding iPad or all-screen MacBook have been circulating for at least a year, especially since Apple filed a patent for a hinge for foldable displays in March 2024.
Of course, this hinge could be for an iPhone, but in May 2024, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that a much larger foldable device is in the works — a giant iPad or an all-screen MacBook. According to Kuo, the device will reportedly feature an 18.8-inch or 20.5-inch display, which would be similar to a 14-inch or 15-inch laptop when folded.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported similar rumors even more recently in December 2024, hinting that the mysterious foldable could be some sort of iPad-MacBook hybrid.
Monday's leak that this upcoming foldable may feature under-display FaceID could mean it won't have a camera notch, so it would be truly all-screen. It would make sense for Apple to pursue a notch-free design so the foldable can be used in portrait or landscape mode. However, this rumor is referring to a prototype, so the specs and features of the final design are still in flux.
However, at the very least this rumor seems to indicate that Apple is still working on a foldable iPad or MacBook of some kind. The question now is, when could it launch?
Apple has yet to officially confirm that it is developing a foldable iPad or all-screen MacBook. Rumors about this mysterious device indicate that it's still in the early stages of development. However, there have been some hints about when Apple might announce it.
Kuo reported last year that "the target mass production schedule for the panel and assembly is 4Q25 and 1H26, respectively," referring to the 20.5-inch and 18.8-inch sizes. Kuo also predicted that the foldable will feature the M5 chip. For context, Apple's latest iPads and MacBooks are currently running on the M4 series chips. So, this means the foldable won't launch until at least 2026. If Kuo's predictions for the device's mass production timeline pan out, it might not launch until 2027.
Bloomberg's Gurman reported an even later launch window estimate of 2028. Gurman also predicted the foldable will ultimately run iPadOS, not macOS, meaning it will be more of a large, foldable tablet than a laptop.
It's too soon to say for sure what category Apple's all-screen foldable will fall into or exactly when it will launch, but it seems like we won't see it until 2027 at the earliest.
All-screen foldable MacBook: Everything we know so far
Where to preorder the M3 iPad Air and the best deals so far
The iPad 11 is Apple's most unintelligent move in years — don't fall for it
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Jim Chanos Sees Big Short in Saylor's Strategy, But Others Aren't So Sure
(Bloomberg) -- Buy Bitcoin, short Michael Saylor's Strategy. That's the latest call from legendary short-seller Jim Chanos, who sees the arbitrage play as a no-brainer. Others aren't so sure. ICE Moves to DNA-Test Families Targeted for Deportation with New Contract Next Stop: Rancho Cucamonga! The Global Struggle to Build Safer Cars US Housing Agency Vulnerable to Fraud After DOGE Cuts, Documents Warn NYC Residents Want Safer Streets, Cheaper Housing, Survey Says The trade has long been on the radar of Wall Street hedge funds, drawn to the premium Strategy's shares enjoy relative to the value of the company's Bitcoin holdings — a gap that topped 200% last year. The discrepancy stems from Saylor's self-styled Bitcoin treasury strategy, through which he has tapped capital markets to buy more and more of the world's biggest cryptocurrency, in turn attracting billions of dollars from retail investors. In the eyes of many arbitrage specialists, the yawning spread is unsustainable — in fact, it's already begun to narrow, but they see further opportunity to profit. 'I haven't seen an arbitrage like this in this size in years, years and years,' Chanos said during a recent interview on the Risk and Return podcast, referencing the trade he disclosed on CNBC in early May. It's one of a series of sophisticated trading strategies around the complex capital structure of Saylor's firm, formerly known as MicroStrategy, and the growing ecosystem of crypto investment vehicles. Some market players see parallels to the once-popular 'widow-maker' pair trade involving Bitcoin and the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, but with fewer constraints. There are still risks involved, though. Chanos, known for his prescient bet against Enron Corp. 20 years ago, emphasized that his current favored trade isn't a wager against Bitcoin or Strategy, but rather a mirror of Saylor's own playbook: selling equity and raising capital to buy more digital assets. The core opportunity, he said, lies in the divergence between Strategy's market price and the company's Bitcoin-adjusted book value. 'The fact of the matter is, this is a Bitcoin holding company,' Chanos said on the podcast explaining the premium dislocation. Buying Strategy shares at their current price of around $400, he said, is effectively equivalent to buying Bitcoin at about two times its value — 'paying around $220,000 for Bitcoin that trades at $110,000. But the company is doing everything it can to close that spread, which is great — there's a catalyst.' A growing number of copycats have also started pursuing similar crypto-treasury strategies, further shifting supply-demand dynamics, Chanos added on the podcast. The investor didn't respond to a request for comment, nor did representatives for Strategy. On a basic level, the premium as measured by Strategy's market capitalization relative to its Bitcoin holding value stands at 70%, according to Bloomberg calculations. Taken a step further — adding in other dilutive securities the company has employed in its massive capital raising in the last year and removing the value of Strategy's legacy software business — and investors are paying a premium for the stock that's nearly double the value of the firm's Bitcoin holdings. If Bitcoin rises but Strategy's premium compresses — or if share dilution outpaces gains— Chanos' trade would turn a profit. Yet like any arbitrage, the spread may widen before it narrows, as seen in the GBTC trade around 2021. Premium Warranted? Some analysts and retail believers argue that a substantial premium in Saylor's firm is warranted, placing it in a unique category. First of all, Strategy offers investors exposure to a zero-fee Bitcoin vehicle, offering an edge over comparable exchange-traded funds. What's more, the company demonstrated an ability to use leverage to grow Bitcoin per share over time, an added value for investors buying the stock instead of the ETFs or underlying crypto, according to TD Cowen analyst Lance Vitanza, who believes Strategy's Bitcoin per share will increase by 26% this year. 'I expect MSTR will trade around its recent historical premium, either side of 100%, for the foreseeable future,' he said, referring to Strategy's ticker. Timing — when to enter and exit the wager— remains a key variable around returns, given the spread's ongoing volatility. In March 2024, Kerrisdale Capital Management promoted a similar pair trade in a letter titled 'Know When to HODL, Know When to FODL,' in a nod to crypto lingo. The firm still stands by its thesis, but 'I don't have the trade on now,' said founder Sahm Adrangi. 'When we put out the report, the premium was much higher and it made sense at that point. Is it going to zero? I don't really know,' he said, declining to specify when the firm closed the position. To Chanos and other fans of the trade, Strategy's ample market capitalization — now over $100 billion — and deep float make it relatively easy to maintain the short leg. For hedge funds, new borrows are being priced at a fee of 0.3 percentage point, according to data from S3 Partners. This helps to keep the cost of carry manageable while waiting for the spread to narrow. The inexpensive terms are likely to persist, given the stock's roughly 250 million free floating shares, and that only 11% is currently sold short, said Sam Pierson, director of research at the firm. But that doesn't eliminate the risk that the borrowing dynamics could change — potentially becoming more expensive and less stable, especially for individual investors, said Victor Haghani, chief investment officer of Elm Wealth and founding partner of Long Term Capital Management. There's a lot of demand for borrowing shares related to convertible arbitrage wagers and leveraged short ETFs, he added. Another source of uncertainty is the potential for an unexpected corporate event, such as a merger that might shift the company's fundamental business, complicating premium estimates and muddying the existing trade. 'Say if all of a sudden Strategy is part of something that is twice as big — then when you try to look at the valuation relative to the Bitcoin it holds, you can't really say that much anymore because now there's a business with revenues,' Haghani said. Still, he is confident of the spread's long-term convergence. 'My expectation is that in four or five years at the longest, the premium will be zero or even negative,'he said. 'I think this is a good trade, a good one possibly for hedge funds, but it's not one I'd want to put on in my personal account for the risks involved and my disadvantaged position relative to hedge funds in running the trade.' --With assistance from Tom Contiliano. Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom Millions of Americans Are Obsessed With This Japanese Barbecue Sauce Is Elon Musk's Political Capital Spent? Trump Considers Deporting Migrants to Rwanda After the UK Decides Not To ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
CNBC
14 minutes ago
- CNBC
Palantir CEO Karp says AI is dangerous and 'either we win or China will win'
Palantir CEO Alex Karp said the artificial intelligence arms race between the U.S. and China will culminate in one country coming out on top. "My general bias on AI is it is dangerous," Karp told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" on Thursday. "There are positive and negative consequences, and either we win or China will win." Karp has been a vocal advocate for U.S AI dominance. He told CNBC in January that the country needs to "run harder, run faster" in an "all-country effort" to develop more advanced AI models. In a recent letter to shareholders, he also touted Palantir's commitment to equipping and enhancing U.S. defense interests. The billionaire tech CEO said Thursday that the U.S. currently has a leg up in the AI race and Palantir is leading the way in making companies more secure and efficient with its tools. "There is no economy in the world with this kind of corporate leadership which is willing to pivot, which understands technologies, which is willing to look at new things, but also has deep domain expertise," he said. "Our allies in the West, in Europe, are going to have to learn from us." Shares of the Denver-based data analytics and AI software firm outperformed in 2024 and have continued their ascent in 2025 as investors bet on their software and work with key government contractors and agencies. The stock is up 74% this year, but investors have to shell out on a higher earnings multiple than its tech peers. "You don't like the price, exit," Karp said on Thursday in response. Karp also asserted that the company is "not surveilling Americans" in response to recent New York Times report that Palantir is helping the Trump administration gather data on Americans.
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Driverless-trucking developer Plus to go public via merger
Plus, an autonomous driving software provider, announced on Thursday it will become a publicly traded company through a merger with Churchill Capital Corp IX. The combined company will operate as PlusAI. 'This transaction provides access to capital and strategic support that will help us advance our product roadmap, execute our development and commercialization strategy, and deliver a transformative logistics solution to one of the world's largest and most essential industries,' David Liu, co-founder and CEO of Plus, said in a news release. Santa Clara, California-based Plus was founded by Liu and Stanford University classmate Shawn Kerrigan in 2016. The company develops AI-based virtual driver software for factory-built autonomous has deployed autonomous driving technology across the U.S., Europe and Asia, which has been used for more than 5 million miles of driving. The company provides autonomous software to global truck manufacturers Traton Group, Hyundai and Iveco. The company's self-driving system, known as SuperDrive is built to autonomously operate heavy commercial trucks. In April, Plus achieved a key driver-out safety validation milestone with SuperDrive and is currently conducting public road testing in Texas and Sweden, the company said. Additional customer fleet trials are scheduled for fall. SuperDrive will initially be targeted to truck manufacturers in the U.S. and then expand to Europe. Plus will market SuperDrive as a driver-as-a-service model, providing autonomous software to enable trucking firms with recurring per-mile valued at $1.2 billion pre-money equity value, will provide an attractive entry point for Churchill IX shareholders, officials said. 'After evaluating many opportunities, we knew Plus was the right partner,' Michael Klein, chairman and CEO of Churchill IX, said in a statement. 'Trucking is the backbone of the global economy, but the industry faces a persistent driver shortage that autonomous trucking has the potential to solve. Broad adoption depends on confidence in vehicle performance and safety and Plus stands out with its advanced virtual driver platform and a customer-centric commercialization model led by OEM partners.' Churchill IX is a so-called blank check company, formed for the purpose of targeting other firms for mergers. The transaction is expected to deliver $300 million in gross proceeds from cash held in Churchill IX's trust account, which is expected to fund Plus through its commercial launch of SuperDrive-enabled, factory-built autonomous trucks by 2027. It's not the first time that Plus was rumored to be in talks to go public. In April 2021, Plus was reportedly close to merging with Hennessy Capital Investment Corp. V, a special purpose acquisition company. The post Driverless-trucking developer Plus to go public via merger appeared first on FreightWaves.
