// RUN โ€” FITS

Can the Apple M4 Max 36GB run Playground v2.5?

Yes โ€” here's how fast and up to what context, with real measured numbers.

Playground v2.5 on the Apple M4 Max 36GB

QuantFits?Max contextSpeedBeyond context
FP16 yes 365k 53-64 t/s ~1-1.2 (slow)
Q8 yes 418k 106.1-127.9 t/s ~1.9-2.3 (slow)
Q4 yes 442k 189.4-228.4 t/s ~3.5-4.2 (slow)

Estimate (memory-bound). Beyond "max context" the KV cache spills to SSD swap and speed drops to the "beyond" figure.

FAQ

Can the Apple M4 Max 36GB run Playground v2.5?โ–ถ

Yes. At Q4 it generates ~189.4-228.4 tok/s and fits up to 442k context; beyond that it spills to SSD swap and slows to ~3.5-4.2 tok/s.

How much context fits?โ–ถ

At Q4, up to about 442k tokens stay in fast memory; longer context spills to SSD swap and throughput collapses.