Virtualization on macOS has become rock-solid in the Apple Silicon era. Parallels Desktop 27 pushes that further with a new Metal-based graphics driver, OpenGL 4.3 support for Windows virtual machines on Apple silicon, faster local AI workloads, and enterprise features for IT teams managing Windows on macOS.

The headline feature is a Metal-based graphics driver delivering hardware-accelerated OpenGL 4.3 support to Windows VMs on Apple silicon, which Parallels says is unique among Mac virtualization tools. OpenGL 4.3 is the minimum graphics level required by many professional Windows apps. ArcGIS Pro, ZWCAD, and Blender 4.3 can now run virtualized on macOS. Parallels claims up to 160% faster OpenGL graphics performance on M3 and newer Macs, with up to 35% faster 3D rendering in ArcGIS Pro, cutting workflow time by up to 24%. Gaming in Windows VMs also benefits.

Parallels Desktop 27 adds support for Scalable Matrix Extension (SME2) instructions in Linux and Windows VMs on M4 and newer Macs. This translates to up to 7x faster AI and machine learning matrix operations and up to 1.75x faster neural network inference, improving performance for tools like Ollama and llama.cpp running inside a VM. For developers building and testing AI workloads locally, this highlights Apple Silicon's role in the AI era.

Parallels Desktop for Enterprise now lets IT use the CLI to determine whether a Mac meets requirements for running Windows 11, streamlining deployment and management.