So, due to these technical limitations, Rosetta translates applications that work in user space only. Virtual Machine applications that virtualize x86_64 computer platforms.

Mac applications that are originally created for Intel-based Mac computers work on Mac computers with Apple M Series chip out of the box by utilizing the Rosetta framework - a translation process that allows running Intel x86_64 applications on Apple M Series chip. Rosetta can translate most Intel-based applications, but it can't translate the following executables:

If you are switching from a Mac with an Intel processor to a Mac with Apple M Series Chip or the other way around, please refer to KB 125344 for more details. Therefore, a virtual machine created on an Intel-based Mac cannot be used on a Mac with M Series Chip, and vise-versa. Software applications are heavily dependent on a computer's CPU architecture: an application that is compiled (created) for one architecture, cannot be easily run on another architecture. Virtual machines created on Intel-based Mac computers have x86_64 CPU architecture that is fundamentally different from the Arm architecture.

It is built on Arm architecture and includes a system on a chip (SoC) that combines numerous powerful technologies into a single silicon, featuring a unified memory architecture for dramatically improved performance and efficiency. Apple M Series chip is a successor of iPad’s A14Z chip and the first designed specifically for the Mac.

Windows 11 m1 mac