Apple announced macOS 27 Golden Gate at WWDC 2026, marking the end of support for Intel Macs and introducing a significantly upgraded Siri AI powered by Google Gemini.
The new operating system is expected to be released this fall. Siri AI will be available in beta for English users later this year.
macOS 27 Golden Gate Compatibility: Apple Silicon Only
macOS 27 requires Apple silicon, and all Intel Macs are excluded, including the four Intel models that still support macOS 26 Tahoe: the 16-inch MacBook Pro from 2019, a 13-inch MacBook Pro from 2020, the 2020 iMac, and the 2019 Mac Pro.
Compatible devices include:
- MacBook Neo (2026 and later),
- MacBook Air with Apple silicon (2020 and later),
- MacBook Pro with Apple silicon (2020 and later),
- Mac mini with Apple silicon (2020 and later),
- iMac with Apple silicon (2021 and later),
- Mac Studio (2022 and later), and
- Mac Pro with Apple silicon (2023).
Apple has committed to providing security updates for Intel Macs through 2029, but major OS feature updates will no longer be available on those machines after macOS 26 Tahoe.
The most advanced Siri AI features require at least an M3 chip and 12GB of RAM. This excludes the MacBook Neo and all Macs with 8GB of RAM.
Siri AI: Gemini-Powered Assistant and Apple Intelligence Features
The largest new feature in macOS 27 is Siri AI, which Apple says uses Google Gemini to provide more capable responses while maintaining Apple's privacy focus.
Siri AI supports natural-sounding conversation, greater app control, and the ability to draw on both internet knowledge and personal context, including on-screen content.
Siri AI includes voice dictation that works across apps with higher accuracy and the ability to write in virtually any app in the user's voice.
A Spotlight helper reduces the need to open the dedicated Siri app for questions. Right-click contextual menus on Mac and iPad provide access to Siri AI actions directly.
Apple's macOS 27 introduces new features in Apple Intelligence beyond Siri AI. These include more advanced image editing tools, smart tab grouping in Safari, near-automatic fixes for weak or compromised passwords, and the ability to create shortcuts by describing what you want.
Liquid Glass Improvements, Performance Fixes, and EU Availability
macOS 26 Tahoe introduced a redesign of the interface called Liquid Glass. macOS 27 improves on that release by addressing issues with legibility and consistency through new refractions, buttons, icons, a tinting strength slider, more uniform round window corners, and sidebars that extend all the way to the screen edges.
Performance updates include faster AirDrop sharing, quicker network file browsing, and reduced Safari start page load times.
Siri AI will be available on Macs in the European Union from launch. This is notable because the mobile Siri AI for iPhone and iPad will not be rolled out in the EU until after iOS 27 is released.
Apple explains that the decision to split the rollout is due to requirements under the EU's Digital Markets Act, which the company says would force it to provide direct access to private data and apps without offering transparency or control to users.
macOS 27 Golden Gate is expected to arrive this fall, although Apple has not specified an exact release date.
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