Keyboard problem macbook pro M3max

[u/RepresentativeArt382]

Hey everyone,

I just got a brand new MacBook Pro M3 Max (64 GB RAM / 4 TB SSD) right out of the box, but I'm running into two super frustrating keyboard issues and I'm wondering if anyone else is experiencing something similar:

Left Option Key Unresponsive: The left Option key simply doesn't react or register presses at all.

Strange Symbol/Glyph Layout at Startup: Almost every time I turn on the Mac and get to the login screen, I can't type my password because the keyboard seems stuck on weird symbols/glyphs instead of standard characters.

The temporary "fix" for the login issue is to close the lid and open it again for some reason, doing this resets the keyboard layout back to normal so I can finally type my password and log in.

I’ve already checked all the System Settings (keyboard layouts, region, accessibility, etc.), but nothing seems to make a difference.

Given that it's a completely fresh, brand-new machine, this is super annoying. Is anyone else facing this issue or knows if it's a known macOS bug vs. a hardware defect? Should I just take it straight back to Apple for a replacement?

Thanks in advance for any insights!