Apple’s AI-packed macOS 27 upgrade for Macs launches on September 14, but can it win over macOS Tahoe haters?

Bad news for Intel Mac owners, though

10 Sep 2026, 12:27 by https://www.techradar.com/author/matt-hanson · TechRadar

News By Matt Hanson Published 10 September 2026

(Image credit: Apple)

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Amongst all the hype over Apple’s first-ever foldable smartphone, the iPhone Duo, which was announced at the company’s ‘Surprise and Shine’ event, Apple (rather quietly) also revealed when Mac users can get the latest version of its desktop operating system, macOS 27 Golden Gate: September 14.

While pretty much all of the attention was focused on the foldable, the launch of macOS 27 is noteworthy for anyone with a modern Mac or MacBook, as this free upgrade brings some tasty new features, while also addressing some of the less popular changes that came with its predecessor, macOS 26 Tahoe.

If you have a compatible Mac, then you should be prompted to download and install macOS 27 Golden Gate once September 14 rolls around. However, if you have a Mac from before 2020 that doesn’t run on Apple Silicon (so any Intel-powered Macs), then you won’t be able to get the update.

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For reference, here are all the Mac models that are compatible with macOS 27 Golden Gate:

MacBook Air M1 or later
MacBook Pro M1 or later
MacBook Pro 13-inch M1 2020 or later
MacBook Pro 14-inch M1 Pro 2021 or later
MacBook Pro 16-inch M1 Pro 2021 or later
MacBook Neo
iMac M1 2020 or later
Mac mini M1 2020 or later
Mac Studio 2022 and later

Apple recently announced new M5 and M6-powered Mac mini and Mac Studio products, and they'll likely launch with macOS 27 preinstalled when they start shipping on September 22.

(Image credit: Apple)

Fixing past mistakes

The main focus of macOS 27, as with Apple’s other operating updates such as iOS 27, and seemingly every piece of new software these days, is AI.

The upcoming macOS 27 upgrade paves the way for Siri AI integration – the long-awaited improvements to Apple’s virtual assistant that should make it more useful. When launched, Siri AI should be able to have two way conversations with you and execute multi-step tasks quickly and easily, which could make using your Mac a lot more convenient. It will be able to interact with apps such as Calendar to complete tasks such as creating events and reminders.

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