[BUG] Cowork incorrectly shows "Apple Silicon required" error on M2 Max MacBook Pro
Preflight Checklist
- [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
- [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
- [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code
What's Wrong?
When attempting to use Cowork in Claude Desktop, I receive an error message stating "Apple Silicon required - Cowork requires a Mac with Apple Silicon (M1 or later). Intel-based Macs are not currently supported."
However, I am running a MacBook Pro with an M2 Max chip, which is Apple Silicon. The chip detection appears to be incorrectly identifying my machine as Intel-based.
What Should Happen?
Cowork should correctly detect Apple Silicon (M2 Max) and allow access to the Cowork feature without showing the "Apple Silicon required" error.
Error Messages/Logs
Apple Silicon required
Cowork requires a Mac with Apple Silicon (M1 or later). Intel-based Macs are not currently supported.Steps to Reproduce
- Open Claude Desktop app on MacBook Pro with M2 Max chip
- 2. Navigate to the Cowork tab
- 3. Receive error: "Apple Silicon required - Cowork requires a Mac with Apple Silicon (M1 or later). Intel-based Macs are not currently supported."
System Info (from About This Mac):
- MacBook Pro 14-inch, 2023
- - Chip: Apple M2 Max
- - - Memory: 32 GB
- - - - macOS: Sequoia 15.3.1
The chip detection is incorrectly identifying this M2 Max as an Intel-based Mac.
Claude Model
None
Is this a regression?
No, this never worked
Last Working Version
_No response_
Claude Code Version
Claude Desktop App (latest version as of Jan 14, 2026)
Platform
Anthropic API
Operating System
macOS
Terminal/Shell
Terminal.app (macOS)
Additional Information
Verified Apple Silicon:
- Confirmed via "About This Mac" that the chip is Apple M2 Max
- - Activity Monitor shows apps running as "Apple" architecture
- - - This is not an Intel-based Mac running through Rosetta
Possible causes:
- The chip detection logic in the Claude Desktop app may be incorrectly identifying M2 Max as Intel
- - Could be a JavaScript/native detection bug
Screenshots attached showing:
- The error message in Claude Desktop
- 2. About This Mac confirming M2 Max chip
4 Comments
Adding my experience here: I'm on an actual Intel Mac (13-inch 2020 MacBook Pro, 2.3 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7, macOS Sonoma 14.4.1) and both the Cowork and Code tabs are now inaccessible. I haven't tried Cowork but the Code tab worked for me ~2 days ago before the recent update. This appears to be a regression for Intel Mac users, not just a chip detection bug. It's a frustrating situation — my MacBook Pro is still a capable machine with 16GB RAM, I shouldn't be REQUIRED to buy a new computer to use this product
Agree with Shaneman. I have a 2020 Macbook Pro with i9 and still works like a charm. Hope anthropic is going to extend cowork to intel chips
@nihalgunu The "Requires apple silicon" banner incorrectly showed for a few users, that issue should have been fixed last week. If you're still having this issue please ping me in a follow up and we can take a look but you should be all set now 👍
@Shanemen Are you saying the normal "Code" tab shows the "Apple silicon required" banner for you? If so and it's still happening please ping me in a comment below and I'll tag it to the right folks, that shouldn't be happening
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