68K to PowerPC in 1994-1998, on to Intel in 2006-2009, and to Apple silicon from 2020. The 68K emulator, Rosetta, and Rosetta 2 that enabled backward compatibility.
68K
From the first 8 MHz Motorola 68000, through PowerPCs reaching 2.5 GHz and more in up to 4 cores, and Intel x86 with up to 28 cores, to Apple’s M4 Max with 12 P cores at 4.5 GHz.
Processors haven’t just increased in speed and packed more transistors into a smaller space. Features such as the Neural Engine in the M1 show Apple is moving in a different direction.
Look forward to Universal Apps, which will show how well Apple Silicon Macs perform. There’s a lot of history buried in them too.
The Eclectic Light Company 