Apple has offered an early glimpse at its next version of iOS, which forgoes a long list of new features in favour of an industrial spring-clean that promises to dramatically boost performance of older devices. Everything from launching your favourite apps to sending files via AirDrop should be speedier with iOS 27 installed, Apple claims.
The Californian company also previewed a slew of new Child Safety features coming to all of its devices.
Parents will be able to approve each new website that younger users attempt to visit, as well as every new contact they attempt to call or text. Apple already automatically blocks nudity on-screen — even during FaceTime calls — but for the first time, it'll also filter out violence and gore on-screen. The announcement arrived a few hours after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced an ultimatum to technology companies to add new safeguards — or face fines.
As well as a slew of new capabilities, Siri AI arrives with a brand-new design | APPLE PRESS OFFICE Rounding out the biggest announcements from Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) keynote was Siri AI, a completely rebuilt Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistant that combines general knowledge with information sourced from texts, emails, notes, and (almost) everything else stored on your device to check your availability, suggest recipes, compose messages, plot directions, summarise information, create reminders, and more.
You can link multiple requests together. For example, you could ask Siri AI to find the date that a friend suggested for dinner (triggering a search across thousands of texts and emails to source the date), and if you're free (a quick scan of the calendar), put an appointment in your calendar (creating a new event and all of the appropriate reminders).
It's clever stuff. Unfortunately, it will not be available to any iPhone or iPad owners living in a European Union country anytime soon due to an ongoing disagreement with Brussels.
iOS 27 Release Date
Following its WWDC keynote, Apple has released beta versions of its new operating systems for developers.
This kickstarts a months-long process where the teams behind popular apps and services add compatibility with some of the new functionality, flag any troublesome glitches in iOS 27, and make sure everything works as expected.
That should mean that all of your favourite apps work with the new Siri AI and other features.
Apple hasn't confirmed the exact release date of iOS 27, but the Californian company typically releases its next-generation operating systems in the autumn. Here's the rundown of when you've been able to download the latest version iOS in recent years, just to give you a rough idea of when you might expect the upgrade to drop.
- iOS 26: Monday, September 15, 2025
- iOS 18: Monday, September 16, 2024
- iOS 17: Monday, September 18, 2023
- iOS 16: Monday, September 12, 2022
If you can't wait a few months, Apple will let anybody test its upcoming releases in July when the Public Beta scheme begins worldwide. That said, we'd only recommend installing beta software on a spare device since there are likely to be bugs, glitches, and other quirks while the company irons out any problems over the summer.
Will You Miss Out On The Best Features?
Unlike its predecessor, iOS 26, which ditched support for three older iPhone models when it was announced, the incoming iOS 27 will be available on every iPhone that supports the current operating system. In other words, if your iPhone is currently running some version of iOS 26, then you'll be able to upgrade to iOS 27 when it's released.
The following iPhone models will be able to upgrade to iOS 26 when it's released:
- iPhone 17 Pro Max
- iPhone 17 Pro
- iPhone Air
- iPhone 17
- iPhone 17e
- iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 16 Pro
- iPhone 16 Plus
- iPhone 16
- iPhone 16e
- iPhone 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 15 Pro
- iPhone 15 Plus
- iPhone 15
- iPhone 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 14 Pro
- iPhone 14 Plus
- iPhone 14
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 mini
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 mini
- iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone 11 Pro
- iPhone 11
- iPhone SE (2nd generation and later)
iOS 27 Exclusive Features
There is a bit of a caveat. While Apple is rolling out iOS 27 to iPhone 11 and newer — and promising up to 30% faster app launches on those seven-year-old hardware — it doesn't mean that every iOS 27 feature will be available on every device. Since many of the Apple Intelligence features are designed to run on-device, this functionality is limited to hardware with a system-on-a-chip that's fast enough to handle those requests.
Below, we've rounded up some of the flashy new features that will only be available on specific models.
Siri AI
The new AI assistant, which has been rebuilt from the ground-up, is only available on iPhone models that are compatible with Apple Intelligence. That means you'll need anything newer than iPhone 16, or an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max. This also covers new features like Write With Siri.
If you have an older iPhone, Siri will remain the same as on iOS 26.
Compatible iPhone models underneath:
- iPhone 17, iPhone 17e, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max
- iPhone Air
- iPhone 16, iPhone 16e, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max
Apple Intelligence
Apple lists Apple Intelligence features in iOS 27 for the same supported iPhone set: iPhone 16 models and later, plus iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max. That includes things like Visual Intelligence, the new editing features built into Photos — Clean Up / Extend / Spatial Reframing, the standalone Image Playground app, Live Translation, and Call Context, to name just a few.
Compatible iPhone models underneath:
- iPhone 17, iPhone 17e, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max
- iPhone Air
- iPhone 16, iPhone 16e, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max
Newer-device-only Siri AI extras
Lastly, there are a few Siri AI features that are specific to the latest-and-greatest iPhone models running the newest A19 Pro. Only these handsets will be able to customise how Siri AI sounds, with Apple offering the ability to "pick a voice, then customise expressivity and pace until it clicks for you." Likewise, the company is promising "improved accuracy in Dictation" across the operating system for a select few models.
Compatible iPhone models underneath:
- iPhone 17 Pro
- iPhone 17 Pro Max
- iPhone Air