am I making a mistake in not future-proofing him with the M2 from the Apple Store?
No no and no. I’m sure a lot of people here will disagree with me.
First, you’re taking a chance that he’s even going to like a Mac so it might just go in the dresser and never seen again.
Secondly this whole future proofing while it does have some merit, most of it causes people to buy way more than they need. M2 isn’t any more proof than M1. M4 is out now and while it’s not yet in the Mac that I’m aware of, it will be soon. This base model M1 is perfect for him to try out a Mac and see what it’s all about. If he really loves it in the future, he can future proof himself and upgrade. If you buy him the M2 now and M4 comes out this fall you just wasted money.