iOS 27: Everything We Know

Apple’s iOS 27 update brings Siri AI, the next generation of Apple Intelligence, new child safety tools, and systemwide performance improvements to the iPhone this fall.

At a Glance

iOS 27 is Apple’s next major iPhone operating system, unveiled at WWDC 2026 on June 8 and now in developer and public beta ahead of a fall release. The update is led by Siri AI, a rebuilt assistant powered by Apple Intelligence, alongside expanded parental controls, Liquid Glass design refinements and speed gains across the system.

Features

• Siri AI, a rebuilt assistant with personal context understanding, broad world knowledge, and onscreen awareness
• A dedicated Siri app that privately syncs conversation history across devices with iCloud
• Search or Ask, a new interface summoned by swiping down from the Dynamic Island
• Siri mode in the Camera app, with Apple Cash bill splitting and nutrition insights
• New Apple Intelligence tools in Photos, Safari, Passwords, Shortcuts, and the Home app
• Child safety features including Ask to Browse and Time Allowances
• Liquid Glass refinements with a customizable appearance slider
• App launches that are up to 30 percent faster
• Compatibility with the iPhone 11 and later

iOS 27 – Everything New

Apple unveiled iOS 27 at WWDC 2026 on June 8, 2026. The update is built around Siri AI, the next generation of Apple Intelligence, new child safety and parental control features, plus an extensive set of design and performance refinements. It is a free software update coming this fall, and Siri AI arrives in English, in beta, later this year.

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, framed the release this way:

Apple products are an essential part of people’s lives, and this year we’re bringing powerful new capabilities to empower our users in even more ways. We’re delivering the next generation of Apple Intelligence across our platforms; introducing Siri AI, a profoundly more intelligent, knowledgeable, and capable Siri; expanding child safety features with intuitive new tools for families; and making our software platforms faster, more reliable, and more delightful than ever before.

According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, Apple’s focus for iOS 27 and its companion updates was on improving software quality and underlying performance, a strategy he compared to 2009’s Mac OS X Snow Leopard, with engineering teams hunting for bloat to cut, bugs to eliminate, and opportunities to speed things up while still adding AI features. That framing matches what Apple shipped in the betas, from an optimized CPU scheduler to faster app launches on hardware as old as the iPhone 11 Pro Max.

At the top of the list is Siri AI, an entirely new version of Siri powered by Apple Intelligence. The assistant understands personal context, has broad world knowledge, and is aware of what’s on screen, so it can find a restaurant recommendation from a text, pull a hotel confirmation number from an old email, or answer questions about the content currently displayed. Requests turn into actions too, with Siri able to draft an email, edit and share photos, edit a just-sent message, and create reminders and events across the system.

A dedicated Siri app collects every chat in one place, with options to revisit or pin past conversations, and iCloud privately syncs the history so a conversation started on a Mac continues on an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple Vision Pro. On the iPhone itself, swiping down from the Dynamic Island starts a conversation, and beta coverage describes the resulting Search or Ask interface as a replacement for the old Spotlight Search screen.

On the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max, Siri AI offers more expressive voices with customizable expressivity and pace, plus a major jump in systemwide dictation accuracy with automatic capitalization, punctuation, and formatting.

The Camera app gains a Siri mode that puts Visual Intelligence behind the shutter button. Tap it and Siri can see what you see, offering nutritional insights about a plate of food or splitting a restaurant bill through Apple Cash, with each person’s total calculated including tax and tip. Beta coverage adds importing multiple calendar events from a photographed schedule, pulling contacts from a business card, and converting a photographed barcode into a Wallet pass.

Write with Siri brings integrated Writing Tools virtually anywhere you type, generating drafts from scratch, refining existing text, and offering suggestions, while matching how you typically write to each recipient in Mail and Messages. Automatic proofreading works systemwide, including in most third-party apps.

Photos picks up serious AI editing. Spatial Reframing lets you drag a photo to shift its perspective after capture, Extend expands an image’s borders with AI fill, and Clean Up removes distractions with more realistic infill. Every AI-edited photo includes a hidden SynthID watermark. iCloud Shared Albums gain cross-platform sharing at full resolution, so Android and Windows users can contribute through iCloud.com, and the library adds keywords, star ratings, customizable slideshows, and new Captured by Me and Identity Documents collections.

Safari organizes tabs into topics automatically, monitors pages for changes with Notify Me, and builds custom extensions from a description with Describe an Extension. The Passwords app can automatically fix weak and compromised passwords by navigating sign-in flows itself. Image Playground gets a new generative model that produces images in virtually any style, photorealistic included, with daily usage limits on server-based generation and increased access through most iCloud plans.

Messages offers one-tap suggestions based on conversation context, failed messages retry automatically, and large photos and videos no longer hold up a conversation while they send. Tapback notifications are consolidated, FaceTime adds Dual Capture for streaming front and rear cameras at once, and the Phone app’s Call Context surfaces confirmation codes and reservation numbers when you call a business, entirely on device.

Calendar accepts natural language for creating and modifying events, and Describe a Shortcut assembles automations from a plain-English request. Wallet converts physical passes into digital ones with Create a Pass, improves the hotel key experience at participating properties, and gets an updated Apple Pay checkout design this fall. The Home app summarizes camera activity with AI, supports natural language clip search, and lifts HomeKit Secure Video to 4K.

Ask to Browse requires kids to request permission for new websites, Time Allowances cap daily use across Entertainment, Games, and Social Media, Screen Time is redesigned around an at-a-glance usage view, and Communication Safety expands to block gore and violent content alongside nudity.

A new Settings slider tunes Liquid Glass from ultra-clear to fully tinted, with improved contrast and sharper icons throughout. App launches are up to 30 percent faster, new photos load up to 70 percent faster, AirDrop transfers are up to 80 percent faster, and an optimized CPU scheduler plus a rebuilt search experience in Spotlight, Photos, and Mail keep the whole system feeling quicker.

Siri AI

Siri AI is the centerpiece of iOS 27. Apple describes it as "profoundly more intelligent, knowledgeable, and capable," and the assistant has been rebuilt from the ground up on a new Apple Intelligence architecture. Conversations are natural and back-and-forth, with detailed responses. Nearly any answer can be extended into a longer exchange with follow-up questions.

Three capabilities define the new assistant: personal context understanding, broad world knowledge, and onscreen awareness. Siri AI also takes action in apps on the user’s behalf.

Personal Context Understanding

Siri AI can search across a user’s personal data, including messages, emails and photos. Apple’s examples: surfacing a restaurant recommendation buried in a text, pulling a hotel confirmation number out of an old email, or finding pictures from a recent trip. When developers integrate their apps with Spotlight, personal context understanding extends to third-party apps as well.

According to Engadget‘s preview, personal-data search worked with Apple’s built-in Mail app in beta but not yet with Gmail.

Broad World Knowledge

With broad world knowledge, Siri AI can reference information online to answer questions on virtually any topic with up-to-date information. Users can extend almost any response into a rich conversation by asking follow-ups, and the assistant keeps the thread going with detailed replies.

Onscreen Awareness

Onscreen awareness lets Siri AI answer questions about whatever content is currently displayed. On iPad and Mac, Siri is built into systemwide context menus, so control-clicking an image, a file, or selected text brings up the option to ask Siri about it directly.

App Actions

Siri AI can take action in apps through systemwide app actions. Apple’s examples include drafting an email from scratch, editing and sharing photos, editing a just-sent message, plus creating reminders and calendar events. The iOS 27 page adds more, such as taking a selfie, rotating a photo, and adding a photo to an album.

Siri Design

On iPhone, swiping down from the top center of the display, where the Dynamic Island sits, starts a Siri conversation. Saying "Hey Siri" or pressing the side button works too. The naming and Spotlight replacement come from beta coverage by AppleInsider and MacRumors: the swipe-down gesture summons a new Search or Ask interface that takes over from the previous Spotlight Search screen, where users can type or speak to Siri, and a long-press on the search bar reportedly lets users swap AI models.

Siri answers show up as concise cards popping out of the Dynamic Island. A swipe down opens room for follow-ups, and a " " button attaches images or documents to the conversation.

Note that the new search takes time to get going. According to Engadget‘s preview, Siri AI can spend several days indexing and optimizing search across the phone’s content after an upgrade, Apple suggests keeping the phone plugged in to speed the process along, and users can block specific apps from Siri’s index.

Siri App

A dedicated Siri app gathers every conversation in one place. Users can revisit past conversations, pin the ones they return to, or start new ones. The app uses iCloud to privately sync conversation history across a user’s devices, so a chat started on a Mac can be picked up on an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple Vision Pro.

Write with Siri

Write with Siri puts integrated Writing Tools virtually anywhere users type. Siri can generate a draft from scratch based on a description, refine existing text on request, and offer tips and suggestions to improve writing. In Mail and Messages, Siri can match how the user typically communicates with each recipient, down to punctuation and tone.

Proofreading happens automatically as users type across the system, including within most third-party apps.

Apple’s AI Models

Under the hood, Siri runs on the next generation of Apple Foundation Models, operating on device and on servers with Private Cloud Compute. A system orchestrator taps on-device capabilities, including the Spotlight index plus the App Toolbox, to work out how to handle each request.

Apple states that the new generation of Apple Foundation Models was custom-built in collaboration with Google and its Gemini models for deeply integrated Apple Intelligence experiences.

Siri Voice

Devices that support Apple’s most advanced on-device model get extras. On those devices, Siri AI offers more expressive voices with customizable expressivity and pace, plus a major boost in systemwide dictation accuracy that captures speech as polished text with automatic capitalization, punctuation, and formatting.

Per Apple’s footnote, the on-device model and these features are available on the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max, on iPad (M4) or later with at least 12GB of unified memory, and on Mac (M3) or later with at least 12GB of unified memory, while the model and expressive voices also come to Apple Vision Pro (M5). It follows that the standard iPhone 17 and iPhone 17e, though fully Apple Intelligence-capable, miss out on the custom Siri voice and the enhanced on-device dictation.

Apple is refining voices through the beta cycle. In developer beta 4, released July 20, Apple added new Siri voices with adjustable expressivity and pace along with a new Siri welcome screen, and according to AppleInsider that build is 24A5390f.

Privacy

Siri’s cloud work runs on Private Cloud Compute. Apple says personal data handled by Private Cloud Compute is not stored nor made accessible to Apple or anyone else, and that outside experts can verify this claim.

Availability and Requirements

Siri AI travels well beyond the iPhone. On iPad and Mac, it is integrated into Spotlight and systemwide context menus. On Apple Vision Pro, Siri AI appears as a 3D visualization users can place in their space and invoke by looking at it and speaking. It is also available on the go through Apple Watch, CarPlay, and AirPods, and on Apple Watch a Smart Stack suggestion can appear to continue a recent conversation from the wrist.

Apple Intelligence and Siri AI in iOS 27 require an iPhone 16 model or later, an iPhone 15 Pro, or an iPhone 15 Pro Max, with the device language set to one of 16 supported languages. Siri AI launches in English first and will expand to more languages over time.

At launch, Siri AI is unavailable in the EU on iPhone and iPad, though Mac and Apple Vision Pro users in the EU can access it. In China, Siri AI and the new Apple Intelligence capabilities are held back while Apple works through regulatory requirements.

On the current betas, Siri AI reportedly has a waitlist joined through Settings, with access taking up to a few weeks, per MacRumors and Forbes.

Visual Intelligence

Siri’s multimodal capabilities are integrated into the Camera app through a new Siri mode. Tapping the shutter lets Siri see what the user sees and respond to it. Point the camera at a plate of food, and Siri mode can provide nutritional insights about the meal.

When users point the iPhone camera at a receipt in Siri mode, it can surface a bill-splitting action, identify individual items on the receipt, and calculate each person’s total including their share of tax and tip, payable through Apple Cash. Bill splitting also works in Messages, in Wallet, or with Visual Intelligence on anything displayed onscreen. Per Apple’s footnotes, Apple Cash bill splitting is available in the U.S. on eligible devices, and Siri mode requires a compatible device set to a supported English variant.

New iOS 27 Visual Intelligence Features

Beta coverage documents additional Visual Intelligence actions beyond the 2 Apple detailed in its press releases. 9to5Mac described the contact scanning and Wallet conversion in April based on Apple’s own pre-release materials.

• Nutritional insights about a plate of food captured in Siri mode
• Bill splitting from a photographed receipt, with totals sent through Apple Cash (U.S. only)
• Importing multiple events into Calendar or Reminders at once from a photographed schedule or list
• Importing contacts from a photo of a business card
• Turning a photo of a barcode from a membership card or pass into a Wallet pass

Visual Intelligence on iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro

Visual Intelligence with Siri reaches beyond the iPhone for the first time. On iPad it is integrated into the screenshot experience, on Mac a dedicated keyboard shortcut selects onscreen content so users can type to Siri about it, and on Apple Vision Pro users can ask about things just by looking at them.

Photos

The Photos app gains a set of AI editing tools powered by the next generation of Apple Intelligence, plus a long list of library and organization upgrades from Apple’s keynote feature list.

Spatial Reframing

Spatial Reframing improves a photo’s composition after capture. Users touch and drag the photo to preview in real time how the perspective shifts, as if the camera had been repositioned in the original scene. Apple says new content is generated only where the perspective changes, which keeps the reframed photo consistent with the original scene.

Extend

The Extend tool expands images, with AI filling in the missing pieces. It can straighten a crooked horizon without cropping or change a photo’s aspect ratio entirely.

Clean Up

Clean Up gets a major upgrade for removing distractions, with better quality and more realistic infill, even in complex scenes. Photos adjusted with Apple Intelligence automatically include a hidden SynthID watermark identifying AI-edited images.

Other New Photos Features

Per Apple’s WWDC keynote feature list, the Photos app picks up an extensive set of non-AI additions.

• Keywords for photos and videos, plus star ratings
• A Captured by Me collection and an Identity Documents collection
• A Selection view for reviewing what’s checked
• Customizable slideshows, with the option to save any slideshow as a video
• Saving individual video frames as photos
• Search using additional metadata, with better people and pet results
• More accurate photo orientation
• Faster rendering in the Collections tab
• An option to prioritize syncing to iCloud Photos, plus faster starts for iCloud uploads
• Photo Shuffle wallpapers that can target a specific pet or include photos of the user

Shared Albums

iCloud Shared Albums add cross-platform photo sharing with full-resolution support. Friends and family on Android or Windows can more easily join and contribute their own photos through iCloud.com, and Shared Albums gain new ways to filter, react to photos, and invite others.

Shared Albums specifically pick up filtering of photos and videos, a recent activity view, reactions with any emoji, additional participant permissions, easier invitations and saving, plus the ability to set a Shared Album to expire. Beta coverage from MacRumors points to a 30-day expiration option.

Safari

Safari can automatically organize tabs into relevant topics as users browse, continuously sorting new tabs into existing or new topics. Apple says Safari’s intelligence works without exposing personal browsing data to anyone, including Apple.

Notify Me

With Notify Me, users can ask Safari to monitor a web page for changes, like a price drop or a restock, and get a notification when a change is detected.

Describe an Extension

With Describe an Extension, Safari generates a custom extension in the toolbar from a natural language description. Users describe what they want the extension to do, and Safari builds it.

Safari Performance

Per Apple’s keynote feature list, the start page loads faster, web app performance and JavaScript handling are quicker, power efficiency is better, and web audio no longer interrupts system audio.

Shortcuts

With Describe a Shortcut, the Shortcuts app assembles the required steps from a plain-language description and adjusts them when the user describes changes. Apple’s examples include setting a morning alarm based on the next day’s first calendar event and turning on the porch lights when a food delivery notification arrives.

Beyond the AI entry point, the keynote feature list details a redesigned Shortcuts editor, an expanded Get What’s On Screen action, else-if support, data storage, plus screenshot and notification automations.

Other Apps

Most of Apple’s built-in apps get attention in iOS 27, from intelligence features to small quality-of-life fixes.

Messages and FaceTime

Messages offers one-tap suggestions based on conversation context, such as creating a reminder or a note, and it can help find the right photos to share by recognizing keywords, locations, and people. Smart Reply in Mail and Messages can draw on the user’s personalized writing style. Per Apple’s footnote, suggestions in Mail and Messages will be available in English.

The keynote feature list adds a drawing app inside Messages, improved syncing across devices, automatic retry of failed messages, and continuous sending of photos, videos, and texts, so large media no longer holds up a conversation. Users can find offloaded media with thumbnails displayed, search by phone number or a contact’s nickname, and get consolidated notifications for multiple Tapbacks instead of a separate alert for each one. Adding recent camera captures is faster too.

FaceTime gains Dual Capture, which streams the front and rear cameras at once, plus improved quality on poor connections.

Phone

When calling a business, Call Context proactively surfaces relevant information in the Phone app, like a confirmation code or reservation number, pulling an airline confirmation code from Mail for example. Apple says Call Context looks at who the user is calling, not what they’re saying, and runs entirely on device. It is coming in English.

Calendar

Calendar supports natural language for adding or modifying events, identifying contacts and locations and creating a title as the user types. Per the keynote feature list, users can also modify multiple events at once, scrolling is smoother, and event details are streamlined.

Wallet and Apple Pay

Wallet gains a Create a Pass capability that converts physical passes into digital Wallet passes, such as scanning a gym membership barcode, an event ticket, or a rewards card. First reported by 9to5Mac from Apple’s own pre-release materials in April, the feature shows up in beta coverage with customizable fields including label, date, membership, contact, coupon code, VIN, and insurance.

At participating hotels and resorts, Wallet’s hotel key experience lets guests view more trip details, receive timely updates about booked activities, and access services available during their stay, all in Wallet. Apple is also introducing an updated design for Apple Pay checkout online and in-app this fall, so users can make more informed payment decisions and choose payment methods that suit their purchases.

According to MacRumors, a new Tap to Share feature lets users share selected details by tapping their iPhone at participating merchants, but it will not be available in the EU.

Home App

The Home app uses Apple Intelligence to combine related accessory notifications into a single updating activity notification, generate video descriptions summarizing what happened across clips, support natural language search through camera clips, and elevate noteworthy clips at the top of Search. Apple’s footnotes require a home hub, an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone, and an eligible iCloud plan for the video AI features.

Supported HomeKit Secure Video cameras can now stream and record in 4K, which requires an iCloud subscription and a compatible camera.

Maps

Flyover in Apple Maps is enhanced using aerial imagery combined with Visual Intelligence models, rendering details from architectural fixtures to the shapes of individual trees in sharper detail. The keynote feature list also notes more accurate Visited Places, offline maps update improvements, and natural language search for routing.

Health

Cycle Tracking in the Health app adds perimenopause and menopause support, including alerts when logged cycle history suggests perimenopause, plus symptom tracking and educational resources. Per Apple’s footnote, cycle deviation notifications inclusive of perimenopause are for ages 40 and above, are based solely on logged cycle history, and are not intended to replace diagnosis, monitoring, or treatment, and Cycle Tracking should not be used for birth control or to diagnose a health condition.

The keynote feature list includes perimenopause- and menopause-focused Fitness workouts, faster Health data updates, synced step counts between the Health and Fitness apps, more accurate post-workout route maps, improved treadmill distance accuracy, and time zone change support in Sleep.

Passwords

The Passwords app, which already alerts users to weak and compromised passwords, can now automatically fix eligible ones with a tap. Using Apple Intelligence and Safari, it agentically navigates through websites to sign in and upgrade accounts to strong passwords.

Image Playground and Genmoji

Image Playground was overhauled with a new generative model running on Private Cloud Compute that creates high-quality images in virtually any style, now including photorealistic. Users can modify images by description or by tapping, circling, or brushing objects to move or resize them. Outputs work for Lock Screen wallpapers, Contact Posters, and Messages, with selectable aspect ratios, and generated images automatically include a hidden SynthID watermark identifying them as AI-generated. Genmoji quality is improved, and users can describe changes they want.

Some Apple Intelligence features, including image generation, have daily usage limits because they rely on powerful server models. Increased access comes with most iCloud subscription plans, which also include Apple Intelligence support for compatible Home cameras.

Music, Podcasts, and Clock

Apple Music gains new AutoMix transitions, refreshed artist and album pages, faster Now Playing loading, faster playback start, and improved streaming reliability, per the keynote feature list. Podcasts adds search within shows. The Clock app gains an independent alarm volume, set separately from system and ringtone volume.

Weather and Journal

Weather gains updated hourly and 10-day views. Journal picks up more intuitive journaling streaks, iCloud sync status for entries, increased attachment limits, and time stamps for entries, and it reportedly supports generative writing prompts for inspiration, per beta coverage from MacRumors.

AirPods

AirPods gain custom EQ in iOS 27, letting users adjust lows, mids, and highs in AirPods settings.

GymKit comes to iPhone as well, connecting to compatible cardio gym equipment such as treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, and stair-steppers for real-time metrics. With AirPods Pro 3, users can sync heart rate data through the iPhone while working out.

Accessibility

VoiceOver gains new capabilities for understanding the world, including richer image descriptions and Action button integration. With Live Recognition, users can press the Action button to ask questions about their surroundings and get detailed responses.

A new captioning feature automatically generates synced subtitles for any video and can translate existing captions into other languages. Magnifier brings assistive exploration to a high-contrast interface for low vision. Voice Control lets users describe onscreen buttons and controls instead of memorizing exact labels, in English in the U.S., Canada, UK, and Australia per Apple’s footnote, and Accessibility Reader works on more complex source material with on-demand summaries and translation.

Smaller accessibility items on the keynote feature list include easier PDF reading and editing with VoiceOver, faster Voice Control response, streamlined Assistive Access setup, faster entry and exit for Assistive Access and Guided Access, streamlined Touch Accommodations setup, plus MFi hearing device pairing and handoff improvements.

Child Safety and Parental Controls

Setting up a child account immediately enables age-appropriate protections systemwide. In Setup Assistant, parents choose exactly which system apps their kids can use, whether a few essentials, a recommended set, or a custom selection, with Ask to Buy governing additions over time. Parents can also require approval for each new contact.

With the new Ask to Browse, kids must request permission to access new websites, and parents can review requests in Messages before approving. It works in Safari and other WebKit browsers on iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 after upgrading Screen Time, while watchOS and visionOS display approved websites only when the feature is enabled.

Communication Safety, which already blurs nudity in Messages and FaceTime and is on by default for users under 18, will now also intervene to block gore or violent content in shared images or videos.

Time Allowances let parents set daily total time limits across the Entertainment, Games, and Social Media app categories, with a suggested daily allowance based on guidance developed with clinical and child development experts. Schedules let parents choose which apps are available at different times or days of the week.

Apple redesigned Screen Time around an at-a-glance view of kids’ average device usage and top apps, with in-the-moment controls: Pause Device Use, Allow Unlimited Use, and Change Schedule. Apple also launched a dedicated child safety website at apple.com/child-safety.

Design Refinements

Updates to Liquid Glass target exceptional readability, with more uniform refraction and improved contrast. App icons are sharper and more detailed.

A new slider in Settings lets users customize how Liquid Glass looks, from ultra-clear to fully tinted, so anyone who found the translucent design hard to read can dial it back without giving up the aesthetic entirely.

Home Screen and Lock Screen

Extra-large widgets come to iOS for the first time, and widgets get real-time updates when their app is open, per Apple’s keynote feature list. Paging between Home Screen pages is smoother, as is scrolling in Control Center, the App Library, and the widget gallery.

The Lock Screen consistently stays awake while scrolling notifications, Lock Screen switching is faster, unlocking is smoother, and Live Activities appear in the Dynamic Island in landscape. MacRumors also reports landscape mode expanding to more Apple apps, framing it as preparation for a rumored larger device.

Performance Improvements

Performance was a stated priority for this release, and Apple published numbers with its test methodology attached. App launches are up to 30 percent faster, tested on an iPhone 11 Pro Max comparing iOS 26.4.2 against prerelease iOS 27 in April and May 2026. New photos load in the Photos library up to 70 percent faster, tested on an iPhone 15 with a 50,000-asset library. AirDrop speeds improve by up to 80 percent, tested on an iPhone 16 Plus sending 30MB of photos off Wi-Fi.

Core system work includes an optimized CPU scheduler. The search experience in Spotlight, Photos, and Mail has been rebuilt for stability and efficiency, with more relevant Spotlight suggestions, and Mail gains a completely new ranking system that surfaces more relevant Top Hits.

During network transitions, the iPhone chooses the best available Wi-Fi or cellular connection, so users stay connected when moving between networks.

Smaller Changes

Apple’s WWDC26 keynote slide, transcribed by 9to5Mac, lists dozens of further iOS 27 changes across the system.

• Camera: all options displayed in Camera settings, lower power use and faster launch in Low Power Mode, smoother camera switching when zooming in video
• Notes: copy and paste as Markdown, section links, divider lines
• Connectivity: faster AirPlay connections to Apple TV and HomePod, more power-efficient Personal Hotspot on N1 devices, improved Bluetooth power management, faster and more reliable NFC reading
• Gaming: improved game controller settings, PlayStation Access controller support, better Game Overlay navigation
• iCloud: richer collaboration link previews, access requests for shared items
• Battery: improved battery insights
• Keyboards: automatic punctuation on multilingual keyboards, multilingual grammar checking, plus extensive new keyboards and language and region expansions
• Setup and account: switching between 2 iPhones with the same phone number, easier Apple Account recovery codes, Quick Start with a recovery contact, password help from the Lock Screen
• Sharing: content-based recipient suggestions, media sharing from third-party apps
• Everything else: proactive car key setup, faster Text Recognition, easier Apple Pay card selection

Foldable iPhone Groundwork

iOS 27 hints at hardware Apple has not announced. According to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman, writing on June 8, the update and its related software offer the clearest public signs yet of Apple’s upcoming foldable iPhone, revealing references to folding hardware and new features designed for larger, more flexible displays.

The groundwork was reportedly planned from the start. Gurman had reported in 2025 that iOS 27 development would prioritize software features tailored to Apple’s first book-style foldable device, and that just as Snow Leopard laid groundwork for future Macs, iOS 27 would lay the foundation for foldable iPhones and other new hardware.

Compatibility

iOS 27 supports the same devices as iOS 26. That means the iPhone 11 and later, including the iPhone SE (2nd generation and later), with Apple’s full list spanning the iPhone 17 Pro Max all the way down to the iPhone 11.

Apple Intelligence and Siri AI require an iPhone 16 model or later, an iPhone 15 Pro, or an iPhone 15 Pro Max. Equivalent requirements apply on other platforms: iPad mini (A17 Pro), iPad models with M1 or later, MacBook Neo (A18 Pro), Mac with M1 or later, Apple Vision Pro, and Apple Watch models paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone. The most advanced on-device model, which enables the customizable Siri voice and enhanced dictation, is limited to the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max among iPhones.

Launch Date

Apple says iOS 27 is coming this fall as a free software update, with Siri AI coming in English, in beta, later this year. Reports from Forbes and 9to5Mac point to a September release alongside new iPhone models, consistent with Apple’s usual pattern, though Apple itself has committed only to the fall window.

Developer beta 1 arrived June 8 (build 24A5355q), beta 2 on June 22 (build 24A5370h), beta 3 on July 6, and beta 4 on July 20 (build 24A5390f). The first public beta arrived July 13, matching developer beta 3, and the second public beta followed on July 22 through beta.apple.com.

iOS 27 ships alongside companion updates across Apple’s platforms. iPadOS 27 shares Siri AI, Apple Intelligence, and the child safety features, and adds up to 5x faster external-drive file browsing and transfers in Files, per Apple’s test on an iPad Pro with a USB4 SSD and 10,000 JPGs. macOS 27 Golden Gate reincorporates classic macOS design cornerstones such as a uniform toolbar, edge-to-edge sidebars, and colored sidebar icons. watchOS 27 introduces a dynamic app grid with 5 Siri-suggested app icons, a tap gesture to open Smart Stack widgets, and a consolidated Find My app, with Siri AI headed to developer testing in a future watchOS 27 beta. visionOS 27 turns panoramas into spatial scenes usable as personal Environments and makes Wi-Fi connection up to 3x faster, while tvOS 27 completes the set of releases Apple named at WWDC26.

iOS 27 Timeline

July 22, 2026 — Second iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 public betas released. MacRumors.

July 20, 2026 — iOS 27 developer beta 4 (build 24A5390f) released. AppleInsider.

July 13, 2026 — First iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 public betas released, matching developer beta 3. MacRumors.

July 12, 2026 — Mark Gurman reports the first public betas will arrive within the week. MacRumors, relaying Bloomberg.

July 6, 2026 — iOS 27 developer beta 3 released. AppleInsider.

July 2, 2026 — 9to5Mac analyzes public beta timing based on historical release patterns.

June 22, 2026 — iOS 27.0 developer beta 2 (build 24A5370h) released. Apple Developer.

June 9, 2026 — Apple details iOS 27 services features including Apple Cash bill splitting and Wallet hotel keys. Apple Newsroom.

June 8, 2026 — WWDC26 keynote: Apple announces iOS 27 with Siri AI, next-generation Apple Intelligence, child safety features, and performance improvements. Apple Newsroom.

June 8, 2026 — Apple publishes dedicated Siri AI and Apple Intelligence press releases detailing the new architecture built in collaboration with Google’s Gemini models. Apple Newsroom.

June 8, 2026 — iOS 27.0 developer beta 1 (build 24A5355q) released. Apple Developer.

June 8, 2026 — Mark Gurman: iOS 27 code offers the clearest public signs yet of the foldable iPhone. X (@markgurman).

June 5, 2026 — Gurman’s WWDC preview describes the 27 releases as especially Snow Leopard-like, with performance improvements. 9to5Mac.

May 20, 2026 — 9to5Mac summarizes iOS 27’s 3 reported goals: Liquid Glass refinement, bug fixes with battery and performance work, and more AI features.

March 15, 2026 — Gurman reiterates iOS 27’s Snow Leopard-style priority on bug fixes and stability. MacRumors, relaying Bloomberg.

November 23, 2025 — Gurman first reports iOS 27 and macOS 27 will focus on quality and underlying performance, laying groundwork for foldable iPhones. 9to5Mac, relaying Bloomberg.

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