Apple kicked off WWDC 2026 this morning with its biggest software announcement in years. iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27 are all coming this fall, and the centerpiece of all of them is a completely rebuilt Siri. Apple is calling it Siri AI, and it’s a ground-up reimagination of an assistant that has long lagged behind the competition.
Siri AI
The old Siri is gone. In its place is Siri AI, built on Apple Intelligence with a new architecture that combines on-device processing with Private Cloud Compute. It can hold a real back-and-forth conversation, understand what’s on your screen, pull context from your messages, emails, and photos, and go out to the web for up-to-date information on virtually any topic.
On iPhone, you can swipe down from the Dynamic Island to open a full conversation with Siri. There’s also a dedicated Siri app that syncs your conversation history across all your Apple devices via iCloud, so you can start a chat on Mac and pick it up on iPhone. Visual Intelligence, previously iPhone-only, is now coming to iPad and Mac as well. On Mac, a keyboard shortcut lets you select anything on screen and ask Siri about it. In the Camera app on iPhone, a new Siri mode lets you point your camera at something and get information or take action on it, including splitting a bill with Apple Cash or getting nutritional info about food.
Writing Tools get a major upgrade too. Siri can now draft from scratch, refine what you’ve written, and even adapt to how you usually write to a specific person. It automatically proofreads as you type across the system, including in third-party apps. Two things worth noting: Siri AI won’t be available in the EU on iPhone or iPad at launch due to DMA regulations, and won’t be available in China at all. Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro users in the EU can access it when using a supported language.
iOS 27 and iPadOS 27
iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 support every device that ran iOS 26, so there are no surprise cutoffs this year. Along with Siri AI, the releases bring Liquid Glass refinements that address the shadow and transparency quirks that bothered a lot of users in iOS 26, updates to Image Playground with more realistic image styles, and a major overhaul of the Shortcuts app with natural language control. Image Playground is now integrated across more platforms and supports a much wider range of styles than the original version.
macOS Golden Gate
This year’s Mac update is called macOS Golden Gate. It drops support for Intel Macs entirely, going Apple Silicon only. The performance gains reflect that: AirDrop transfers up to 80% faster, apps launching up to 30% faster, and photos appearing in your camera roll up to 70% faster. The interface gets a design pass as well, with a more uniform toolbar across apps, sidebars that stretch to screen edges, tighter corner radii on windows, and refreshed app icons.
Device Support
Apple Intelligence and Siri AI in iOS 27 require iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, or iPhone 16 and later. The most advanced features need at least an iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, or iPhone 17 Pro Max, or an iPad or Mac with M3 or later and at least 12GB of unified memory. On the Mac side, the Intel cutoff with Golden Gate means any Mac running an Intel chip won’t be getting the update.
Beta 1 Build Numbers
- iOS 27 beta 1: 24A5355q
- iPadOS 27 beta 1: 24A5355q
- macOS Golden Gate beta 1: 26A5353q
- watchOS 27 beta 1: 24R5289n
- tvOS 27 beta 1: 24J5289o
- visionOS 27 beta 1: 24M5291p
- Xcode 27 beta: 27A5194q
Developer Betas Available Now
Developer betas of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27 are available today through the Apple Developer Program. Public betas and the final releases are expected in the fall.