macOS Golden Gate could finally unlock the shackles holding back my Mac

It looks like macOS 27 will be the start of a new era of modernization that macOS sorely needs.

I recently wrote a couple of articles about the attacks PC makers have made against the MacBook Neo. In both those articles, I responded to criticism from Dell and Microsoft, with the major point being that, in the end, you’re still using Windows, which has so many problems that it makes the argument against Microsoft’s platform very easy to make.

However, I have to admit that while Windows is filled with bloatware and performance issues, I have to give Microsoft credit for at least trying to do something substantial and game-changing. Even though you may be sick of hearing it, AI is the future, and Microsoft has attempted to make its Copilot agent the core of Windows. It hasn’t quite worked out, but at least Microsoft is trying.

Meanwhile, Google held its own developers conference recently, and it showed off so many AI-based features with its Gemini technology that it was hard to keep track of them all. Many of these features will be available in Chromebooks that compete in the same market as the MacBook Neo.

My thinking before the WWDC keynote on Monday was that Windows has Copilot, Google has Gemini, and Apple has… scattered features such as Image Playground and Writing Tools. [Insert sad trombone sound here.] While macOS is head and shoulders its competitors in usability, I couldn’t help but feel like macOS was still in danger of being left behind. Sure, Microsoft had to reassess and scale back its Copilot integration, but they’re clearly doing something to show that Windows is progressing with the times.

It’s hard to say that about macOS. We got a glorified makeover last year and an Apple Intelligence false start two years ago.

So I felt that at this year’s WWDC, Apple had something to prove. Based on what was shown in the keynote, it looks like macOS Golden Gate will be the start of a new era of modernization that macOS sorely needs. Siri AI will unlock new levels of user productivity, free users from monotonous tasks, and allow users to try things they’d won’t before. Sure, it would’ve been nice if Apple didn’t have to turn to Google as a starting point, but Apple Foundation Models are still private and steeped in Apple training.

And there are flourishes all over macOS 27 that make the entire system more modern. For example, Apple is integrating Siri into the Spotlight search bar for all-over access. You can type any question into the search to start a conversation with Siri, kind of like an iMessage chat, but also extend it to documents and projects with system-wide context menus. As you work, the new Siri will recognize names, places, and messages, give writing suggestions, and help discover things that would normally take hours using Safari. The demo by OS system experience director Justin Titi was impressive and appeared to open up the Mac to a whole new world of possibilities.

While I’m excited by the possibilities with macOS Golden Gate, I’ll need to temper my enthusiasm. You can thank the WWDC24 false start for that. Also, as of the very first developer beta that was released on Monday, the new Siri AI features are not yet available–developers have to join a waitlist before they can get access. As of now, it’s very much a “wait until I see it” situation, but I’m optimistic.