Google today introduced the Pixel Tag, its answer to Apple's AirTag. Pixel Tag is Google's first item tracker, even though Google implemented an item tracking network two years ago that's been used by third-party devices.


The Pixel Tag is made from stainless steel, and it is IP67 water- and dust-resistant. There's a built-in speaker that can play a sound when an item it's attached to is lost, and a button that causes a sound to play on a connected smartphone. An on-device button is one feature that distinguishes the Pixel Tag from the ‌AirTag‌.

Pixel Tags have an oval shape instead of a round shape, and they don't come with an attachment point and like the ‌AirTag‌, require an add-on accessory for adding to keys or bags. Like the ‌AirTag‌, the Pixel Tag uses a replaceable battery that lasts for up to one year. It works with Android devices running Android 9 or newer with Bluetooth 6, and can be tracked in the Find Hub app.

Google added Bluetooth and Ultra Wideband to the Pixel Tag, so it supports a precision finding feature when an item is lost nearby but out of sight. The Pixel Tag supports many of the same functions as the ‌AirTag‌, like alerts when an item is left behind and the option to share item location with multiple people.


The ‌AirTag‌ relies on Apple's Find My network when an item is out of range of its owner's device, and Google has a similar system. The Find Hub network taps into more than a billion Android devices for locating items.

Google has the same protections as Apple, and Android devices send alerts when an unknown tag is detected traveling with you. Unknown tracker alerts are cross-platform thanks to a collaboration between Apple and Google, so iPhone users will get an alert if a Pixel Tag is nearby and vice versa.

Google plans to sell Pixel Tags for $29 for one or $99 for four, which is the same price as the ‌AirTag‌ 2. Pixel Tags will launch in November 2026.
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Apple hired former American Airlines executive vice president Nick Gatten as its new vice president of government affairs, reports Bloomberg.


Gatten will take on some of the duties of senior vice president of government affairs Katherine Adams, who is retiring at the end of 2026. Gatten will report to Apple senior vice president and general counsel Jennifer Newstead, with Adams to remain available in an advisory role until October 1.

Bloomberg says Gatten is a Republican that Apple felt would be able to align with the Trump administration while also working with democrats. He previously worked at Fannie Mae where he managed a team that interfaced with Republican members of Congress, and he oversaw government affairs at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and American Airlines. He is also on the board of the Faith and Politics institution, an organization that "cultivates mutual respect, moral reflection, increased understanding, and honest conversation among political leaders." From the article:

At the same time, Apple sees Gatten as someone who can work constructively with policymakers on both sides of the aisle, the people said. That will be especially important if the balance of power shifts in Washington. Democrats are vying to take control of at least one chamber of Congress in midterm elections in November, and Trump has less than 2 1/2 years left in his term.

Gatten will work closely with Tim Cook in his new role. Cook plans to step down as Apple CEO on September 1, with hardware chief John Ternus to take over. Cook will remain on as executive chairman, engaging with policymakers and governments worldwide.
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Samsung today said its Galaxy Buds Hearing Aid feature has been cleared by the U.S. FDA, which means hearing aid capabilities will be coming to the Galaxy Buds in the fourth quarter of 2026.


Samsung will join Apple in offering over-the-counter hearing aid functionality. Apple added an FDA-cleared hearing health feature to the AirPods back in 2024, allowing them to be used as a clinical-grade hearing aid.

Like the AirPods, the Galaxy Buds can replace a hearing aid for mild to moderate hearing loss, and Samsung is introducing a Hearing Test option like Apple did. Galaxy Buds users can do a self-administered hearing test in five minutes and the resulting clinical-grade audiogram can be used to adjust the built-in Hearing Aid feature.

The Galaxy Buds will amplify the sounds users have difficulty hearing, like high frequencies or whispers, which is also how the AirPods work. Noise elimination and beamforming also help Galaxy Buds users by focusing on the sounds in front of the user and suppressing background noise.

Samsung says it worked with the National Acoustic Laboratories and Samsung Medical Center to develop the hearing aid feature set. Hearing Aid features will be available on the Galaxy Buds3 Pro and the Galaxy Buds4 Pro. A newer Samsung Galaxy smartphone that supports One UI 8 or later is required.

After introducing hearing aid features in the U.S. in iOS 18.1, Apple has expanded availability to over 150 countries and regions. Apple had a two-year head start, but Samsung is now starting to catch up with a Galaxy Buds hearing health option that matches most of what the AirPods can do.
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Sonos is working on an upgraded version of its Ace headphones that will support AI, reports Bloomberg. The Sonos Ace Ultra showed up in an FCC filing earlier this week, with the product likely set to debut in September.


Sonos debuted the original Sonos Ace in 2024. Reviews praised the sound quality and active noise cancellation, but the headphone market is crowded, and Sonos' product launched shortly after its disastrous app redesign. The headphones also didn't fully integrate with the rest of the Sonos ecosystem, making them unappealing to Sonos users. Sonos ended up selling around 200,000 units, well below the internal one-million target it set.

Bloomberg suggests the new model will kick off Sonos' push into artificial intelligence. The headphones could support voice commands based on info in the filing, allowing them to be used with AI chatbots from third-party companies. Sonos CEO Tom Conrad said last month that AI will be an area of focus, with "conversational computing and predictive intelligence moving into the home."

The headphones will come in Greige, Shadow Black, Agave, Blush, and Sand, according to the FCC filing, but little else is known about them because most of the filing was redacted.

The original Sonos Ace were priced at $449 at launch and were competitive with the AirPods Max. The headphones had an over-ear design similar to the AirPods Max, and the same general feature set. Apple does not have a new version of the AirPods Max coming anytime soon, so the second-generation Sonos Ace headphones will still be pitted against the original AirPods Max design.
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Satechi today launched the ChargeView 240W Desktop Charger, a successor to the 140W ChargeView released last year. The ChargeView 240W can power multiple devices at one time, splitting 240W across six USB-C ports.


The ChargeView 240W has an LCD display that shows the live wattage of all ports that are in use. The C1 and C2 ports offer up to 140W each, while ports C3 and C4 can deliver up to 100W each. The final two ports offer up to 30W. These are maximum power levels, and actual wattage will vary based on how many ports are used at one time. If all six ports are in use, power would be split 70W/70W/30W/30W/20W/20W.

Satechi is offering the ChargeView in Space Black, and it has a metallic matte finish with a glossy display cover. The Space Black shade is meant to complement Apple devices like the MacBook Pro and Studio Display. There is an included stand that allows the ChargeView to be used in horizontal or vertical orientation on a desktop.

The ChargeView uses GaN technology so it is compact, and it has no fan, so it operates silently. Satechi notes that the device will redistribute power when a new device is plugged in, so there can be a momentary interruption in charging.

The ChargeView 240W can be purchased from the Satechi website or from Amazon for $149.99.
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Apple today extended its 2026 Back to School Promotion until September 24, which means it will last almost a month longer than planned. The extension is applicable in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and multiple countries in Asia.


The Back to School promotion offers a free item or gift card when students or educators purchase an eligible Mac or iPad model, plus an educational discount.

In the United States, Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Thailand, Apple is offering a gift card with purchase. In the U.S., that includes a $150 gift card when purchasing a MacBook Pro or a $100 gift card when purchasing a MacBook Air, iPad Pro, or iPad Air.

In China, Singapore, and Vietnam, customers can get a pack of four AirTags with the purchase of select devices, while customers in India can get a pack of four AirTags, AirPods 4, or Apple Pencil Pro depending on the device bought.

The MacBook Neo, iPad mini, entry-level ‌iPad‌, desktop Macs, and iPhones are excluded from the promotion. UNiDAYS verification is required to make a purchase.

Apple previously planned to end its Back to School promotion on August 27.
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Elon Musk's SpaceXAI today announced the launch of Grok Bot, a "team of always-on agents" that can complete tasks using tools, websites, and apps. Grok Bot can work in the cloud, so jobs keep running when your laptop is closed. The feature is tied to Cursor, the AI coding company that SpaceX is acquiring for $60 billion.


Grok subscribers can send a message to a bot from their phone or desktop app using natural language. SpaceXAI says that while other tools may require building workflows and routines, Grok Bot gets a task done with a chat. It is able to sign into websites (even those with no API), but SpaceXAI hasn't given details on how authentication works.

Multiple bots can be used in parallel, with one managing others and specialists for different tasks. Bots can join a group chat where they can coordinate on their own, passing work, assigning ownership, and only drawing in the user for judgment calls.

Users can teach Grok Bot a workflow. It watches as a task is completed, saves the routine, and then can run it solo the next time by following the same steps. SpaceXAI says bots learn over time and can eventually start working "before you need to ask."

There are several Grok Bot examples on the SpaceXAI website, like a sales bot updating the CRM with call transcript notes, an ops bot onboarding new hires and processing invoices in Gmail, and an engineering bot reproducing a bug in the product UI, filing a ticket, and handing the fix task off to a debugging bot.

Grok Bot is in beta and available for SuperGrok Heavy, Cursor Ultra, and Cursor Teams Premium subscribers on macOS and iOS. Enterprise users can join a waitlist for future access.
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Apple has again failed to earn a stay for fee calculations in its ongoing legal fight with Epic Games. Apple's case will be heard by the Supreme Court in the term that begins in October, and Apple asked the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California to pause proceedings until then, but the court said no [PDF].


Apple now has 24 hours to give the court an outline of the fees it wants to charge developers for using alternative payment options and linking out to purchase options on the web. ‌Epic Games‌ will then be able to give a legal analysis of Apple's fee proposal, and the court will decide what's reasonable.


Fee calculations are the result of a long, drawn-out dispute between ‌Epic Games‌ and Apple, which started when Epic sued Apple in 2020. Apple largely won the initial legal fight, but was ordered to change its anti-steering rules to let developers link to non-App Store purchase options. Apple complied, but charged a 12 to 27 percent fee that resulted in few developers choosing to use the option.

‌Epic Games‌ accused Apple of violating the court's order and U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers agreed. In April 2025, she found Apple in contempt of court for willfully violating her ruling, and stopped Apple from collecting any fees on links in the U.S. App Store.

Apple appealed, and the appeals court upheld the contempt ruling, but said Apple was entitled to reasonable fees for its intellectual property. The appeals court sent the case back to the district court to figure out what a reasonable fee might be. Apple has not been able to collect payment for link-outs since April 2025, and right now, there are no fees.

The appeals court ruling that continued to hold Apple in contempt led Apple to appeal to the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case. Apple sought a pause on the fee calculations because the higher court's decision could undo the contempt ruling, but the appeals court, Supreme Court, and now the district court have denied Apple's pause requests.

The court will now determine a fee, and Apple will need to change its ‌App Store‌ rules to comply. The fee that's set in this legal battle could have implications well beyond the United States because Apple told the Supreme Court that regulators around the world are watching to see the outcome.
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Apple today released new AirPods beta firmware available for public testers. The firmware has a build number of 9A5336b, and it is available for the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, AirPods 4, and AirPods Max 2. It is the same as the AirPods beta released for developers last week.


In iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS Golden Gate, Apple is adding a new AirPods interface, a slider for Adaptive mode, and support for custom EQ, so the firmware lets public beta testers use those features. AirPods are also compatible with the new Siri AI.

When the AirPods are connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Mac running iOS 26, iPadOS 26, or macOS 26 or later, there is a beta firmware option that can be accessed in the AirPods settings interface. Toggling on beta updates allows users to install the beta firmware.

Firmware updates can be downloaded by connecting the AirPods to an Apple device and connecting them to power. It can take a few hours for new firmware to be installed because there is no software update option like there is for other Apple devices.
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Apple Pay executive Jennifer Bailey is retiring and leaving Apple in October, reports Bloomberg. Bailey has been with Apple since 2003 and has long overseen ‌Apple Pay‌ and Apple Wallet.


In an employee memo announcing her departure, Apple's services chief Eddy Cue said Bailey will be available in an advisory role.

After more than 25 years at Apple, Jennifer Bailey has decided to retire in October. During her tenure, Jennifer has made extraordinary contributions from leading the Apple Store Online through a period of significant growth and global expansion to overseeing the launch of Apple Pay.

Under Jennifer's leadership, Apple Pay has changed the way hundreds of millions of our users pay, with a simpler, more secure, and private experience. She also led the development and growth of Apple Wallet, oversaw the development and launch of Apple Card, and led our work in Services fraud prevention and partner operations, Gift Cards, and Trust and Safety. And those are just a few of her achievements.

On a personal note, Jennifer has been an incredible friend and leader, and I will miss working with her.

Please join me in thanking Jennifer for her incredible contributions to Apple. Before Jennifer's transition at the end of October, we will announce our succession plan, and Jennifer will continue to be available to support the transition in an advisory role.

As we continue to work toward our vision of replacing the physical wallet, I'm more confident than ever in the work that we are all doing and look forward to an exciting future ahead.

Bloomberg says Bailey's retirement is "seen as a major loss" for the company. ‌Apple Pay‌ has expanded to more than 80 countries under Bailey's leadership, and Apple says it is accepted at more than 85 percent of retailers in the United States.

Bailey is one of several Apple leaders who have retired or are retiring in the near future. Apple general counsel Kate Adams is leaving Apple in late 2026, while environmental chief Lisa Jackson left in early 2026. AI chief John Giannandrea and COO Jeff Williams retired in 2026 and 2025, respectively, and UI design lead Alan Dye departed for Meta in late 2025. Apple CFO Luca Maestri and marketing chief Phil Schiller have taken on smaller roles, and CEO Tim Cook is set to transition to a new role on September 1. Other executives like ‌Eddy Cue‌, Craig Federighi, Deirdre O'Brien, and Greg Joswiak have all been with Apple for decades and are getting closer to retirement age.
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Apple today released the third public beta of macOS Golden Gate, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its fall release. You can sign up to test the update on Apple's beta website, and then download it by going to System Settings > General > Software Update and toggling on the macOS 27 beta.


‌macOS Golden Gate‌ includes the same Siri AI features as iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, but you get to ‌Siri‌ through Spotlight with a Command + Space keyboard shortcut. ‌Siri‌ can search the web to answer questions, look through your personal data like photos, emails, and messages to help you find what you're searching for, and complete actions in and between apps. There is a dedicated ‌Siri‌ app, and you can hold ongoing conversations with ‌Siri‌.

Apple brought Visual Intelligence to the Mac, so ‌Siri‌ can look at what's on your screen and answer questions about it.

The Liquid Glass design introduced last year has been updated, and Apple added a slider for controlling overall system transparency. Liquid Glass opacity has been changed so it better diffuses complex content, and other design changes bring more depth and separation to the UI so it's easier to tell which window is active.

Apps now feature uniform toolbars with headings and controls that are easier to read, and windows no longer have such dramatically rounded corners. Sidebars are no longer floating and extend edge-to-edge, plus window positioning is more consistent across external displays.

Write with ‌Siri‌ is able to generate text from scratch, correct your grammar, or give you feedback on your writing, and there are new AI editing tools in the Photos app. In Shortcuts, you can create automations with natural language requests, and search has been improved in Mail and Messages. Apple made multiple performance improvements across ‌macOS Golden Gate‌ for a faster, smoother experience even on older Macs.

More on the new features in macOS 27 can be found in our macOS Golden Gate roundup.
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Apple today released the third public betas of iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, allowing anyone with a compatible device to download and test the new software. The third betas come two weeks after Apple seeded the second betas.


You can get started by signing up on Apple's beta website and then opting in to the public beta by going to Settings > General > Software Update and choosing the ‌iOS 27‌ or ‌iPadOS 27‌ Public Beta option.

‌iOS 27‌ introduces Siri AI, a more capable version of ‌Siri‌ that can search the web, access your personal information, see what's on your screen, and take actions in and across apps. ‌Siri‌ in ‌iOS 27‌ is more similar to Claude or ChatGPT than the prior version of ‌Siri‌, with a dedicated ‌Siri‌ app for back-and-forth conversations. You can use ‌Siri‌ AI if you have a device that supports Apple Intelligence.

Apple updated the Liquid Glass design that debuted last year, adding a slider to adjust the transparency level and refining its look. There are new AI features in many of Apple's apps. Visual Intelligence moved to the Camera app and supports new features like getting the nutritional information for a meal or splitting a bill, and ‌Siri‌ is able to generate text for you or help you refine your writing with Write with ‌Siri‌.

There are new AI photo editing tools in the Photos app, Safari can organize your tabs automatically, and you can create Shortcuts and Safari extensions using natural language commands. AirPods have custom EQ, the Home app supports 4K video cameras, and there are new child safety controls for parents.

Apple made dozens of improvements to device performance, and everything feels faster, even on older iPhones. Apps launch quicker, AirDrop transfers are faster, the keyboard loads quicker, and more.

Additional information on the new features in ‌iOS 27‌ can be found in our dedicated iOS 27 roundup, with info on ‌iPadOS 27‌ available in our separate iPadOS 27 roundup.
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Apple today released the third public betas of tvOS 27 and watchOS 27, giving Apple TV and Apple Watch users a chance to try the new software ahead of its fall launch. There's also a new HomePod Software 27 beta for the ‌HomePod‌ and HomePod mini.


You can sign up for Apple's public beta testing program on the beta website, and then download the updates through the Settings app on each device.

‌watchOS 27‌ adopts Siri AI, and you can use ‌Siri‌ from your wrist as long as you have an iPhone that supports it. ‌Siri‌ AI can access your personal information, answer all kinds of questions, and complete tasks for you. There is a dedicated ‌Siri‌ app that's front and center on the watch in the new dynamic app grid that comes up when pressing the Digital Crown.

There's a new gesture for selecting a widget in the Smart Stack, plus Apple added Smart Stack suggestions for finding a parked car, accessing a transit card, and getting a birthday reminder.

Workout Buddy works without your iPhone nearby, treadmill run and walk distances are tracked more accurately, and Apple added a unified Find My app that also supports Precision Finding.

tvOS 27 has a redesigned Podcasts app, Hi-Res Lossless audio and AutoMix song transitions in Apple Music, and easier profile switching. With performance improvements, apps launch faster, animations are speedier, and devices connect more quickly when AirPlaying content.

More on what's new in the updates can be found in our watchOS 27 roundup and Apple TV roundup.
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Apple is working on "Apple Reference Image," a photo provenance system that will verify if an image was captured with an iPhone. References to the feature were found in a privacy disclosure included in iOS 27 beta 5, but it is not live yet.


According to the text, there will be a "Reference" mode option in the Camera app that users can select. Using this mode will embed provenance data in the image's metadata.

Images captured with an opt-in Reference mode can be authenticated to confirm they were taken with an iPhone. Authenticating is done by tapping the Reference badge on the image, which sends the raw image, sensor signatures, capture time frame, and the unique hardware identifiers of the sensor to Apple's Private Cloud Compute (PCC) servers. PCC uses the information to determine whether the camera captured the photo, gives it a unique ID, and then returns an authenticated version to the user's device.

When authenticating a photo, Apple receives sensor data, a hash, and the assessment results, but not the raw photo. Apple can refuse to authenticate images from a sensor that might be compromised, and it can retroactively revoke a sensor's past authentications.

Authenticated photos can be viewed on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and the Reference badge can also be clicked on a Mac. Images have to be captured in Apple's specific Reference mode to be authenticated, which suggests it's a feature aimed at pro photographers, journalists, and others who need to verify images. There may also be a video component, since Apple's disclosure mentions "photos or videos" and "uncropped footage."

Reference mode offers hardware-backed evidence that an image was captured with a physical camera sensor, which is useful at a time when AI can generate realistic-looking images. AI images are often watermarked or labeled through metadata to make sure they can be identified as fake, including images from Image Playground.

Camera manufacturers like Leica, Sony, and Nikon use C2PA Content Credentials for authentication, and Google also adopted it for the Pixel 10 lineup. Apple's authentication system sounds like it serves a similar purpose.
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We're a little over a month away from the launch of iOS 27, and Apple is continuing to make changes. The fifth beta of ‌iOS 27‌ changes the look of some app icons and adjusts Liquid Glass, plus it adds some smaller features that make the iPhone just a little nicer to use.

App Icons

There are updated Liquid Glass icons for Safari, Siri, Settings, Remote, App Store, and Preview. Some of the icons have been entirely redesigned, while others feature more detail than before.

Siri AI Voice Customization

Voice customizations for ‌Siri‌ AI have been expanded, and Pace and Expressivity can be adjusted for all seven American voices and the four British voices.


‌Siri‌ AI voice customization is done on-device, so the feature is limited the iPhone 17 Pro, ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max, or iPhone Air.

Contacts

If a contact you've created has a company associated with it, the company name will show in the contact list under the name and in search. It makes it easier to see more information on a contact without having to tap into the contact card.

Create a Pass

The Apple Wallet Create a Pass feature is now available outside of the U.S.

Splash Screens

Apple added splash screens for the Photos, Wallet, and Music apps, explaining what's new in ‌iOS 27‌.

Search and Ask

Apple made minor changes to the animation when bringing up Search or Ask. The suggestions interface now comes up as the search bar does rather than popping up slightly afterward.

The search interface also now has a "Search the Web" option at the bottom of results that was not there before.

Apps in Search

You can now decide whether search should show app results, and if so, how many. You can turn off app results, have it show four apps, or have it show eight apps. There's also a toggle for showing app shortcuts.

Control Center

When connected to Wi-Fi, the Control Center no longer shows information on cellular connection.

5G

5G+ is now available in Spain.

Software Updates

When you look at your software version in Settings > General > About, it now tells you when the last update was installed.

Clock

There is a thicker font for the Alarms and Timers section of the Clock app.

Liquid Glass

The clearest Liquid Glass setting is clearer than it was in the prior beta.

Mail

There's now a toggle for the Personalize Smart Replies feature in the Mail app. It's off by default and can be turned on in the Mail section of the Settings app.

Battery

The Battery section of the Settings app will now let you know if a poor cellular connection is causing battery drain.
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Apple is making more of an effort to turn the iPhone into a physical wallet replacement in iOS 27, and there are several upgrades to the Wallet app.

Pass Upgrades

Apple upgraded airline boarding passes in the Wallet app with iOS 26, and in ‌iOS 27‌, upgrades are coming to additional types of passes. Memberships, gift cards, loyalty cards, and rewards cards can use a bolder "Poster Generic" card style with full background images, primary logo, header fields, footer field, primary fields, and an optional barcode.


Each pass is able to include up to two actions that can be tapped from the bottom of the pass, such as getting directions to a venue or checking a rewards point balance.

Apple is also allowing users to check the pass issuer certificate to ensure that a digital pass is legitimate (not applicable to Create a Pass), and there are four new barcode types supported, including EAN–13, Code 39, Codabar, and ITF.

There is a new Pass Designer Mac app for developers that makes it easier to create a pass using a WYSIWYG editor.

Create a Pass

There's a "Create a Pass" feature in the Wallet app for adding tickets, memberships, and more using Visual Intelligence. If you have a ticket for an event and there's not a digital version available for the Wallet app already, you can create one using the physical pass.



You can scan a pass and add it with Visual Intelligence if there's a barcode or QR code, or a pass can be added manually. Pass templates include Standard, Membership, and Event.

Each type includes relevant information like name, location, or admission type, along with a scannable code drawn from an included barcode or QR code that you take a photo of. There are 12 background colors to choose from with different texture options, or seven custom backgrounds for categories like theater, music, sports, and movies.

Fields can be added or removed as needed when creating a custom pass, with options like label, date, membership, contact, coupon code, VIN, insurance, and more, so most physical cards are able to be stored digitally.

Hotel Keys

When you add a digital hotel key from a participating hotel to the Wallet app, you can now view more details about the trip. Hotels can provide updates on booked activities and allow access to different services.

AI Bill Splitting

Using the new Siri Mode in the Camera app, or a feature in the Messages and Wallet apps, you can take a photo of a bill and use Apple Intelligence to figure out what each person owes. ‌Visual Intelligence‌ scans the receipt and makes a digital copy of everything on the list, and each person can select what they consumed. Tax and tip portions are also calculated automatically.

Payments can be made using Apple Cash, which is a U.S.-only feature.

Insights

‌iOS 27‌ includes an "Insights" feature where you can add financial accounts to the Wallet app to monitor spending.



Insights is an expansion of the Connected Accounts feature in earlier versions of iOS, and it includes spending, recurring transactions, account balances, and more. It works for financial institutions that have implemented Connected Cards support, including several UK banks.

Order Tracking

Order tracking in the Wallet app is expanding to Australia and Canada in ‌iOS 27‌. In ‌iOS 26‌, it was limited to the United States and UK.

Tap to Share

Tap to Share is an ‌iOS 27‌ feature that lets customers connect to a participating merchant's iPhone for quicker digital checkout.

Device Requirements

‌Visual Intelligence‌ is an ‌Apple Intelligence‌ feature requiring an iPhone 15 Pro or newer. Many of the other features should work on all iPhones.
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In the fifth beta of iOS 27, Apple is continuing to make design tweaks. There are updated Liquid Glass icons for Safari, the Siri app, Settings, Remote, App Store, and Preview.


The Safari icon is a brighter blue with more detailed compass lines and arrows, while the ‌Siri‌ icon looks more like the actual ‌Siri‌ bubble that's displayed when ‌Siri‌ is activated. The ‌App Store‌ app icon is more translucent so you can better see each line making up the A, Settings uses more translucency, and Preview has an entirely different look with a loupe over a colorful background. The Remote icon also has more detail and it's been updated with a gray background instead of black.

Some app icons were updated with the initial ‌iOS 27‌ beta release, including Maps, Photos, and Weather, but others kept their iOS 26 look.

It's possible Apple will overhaul even more icons in upcoming betas, because the company said it was planning to give icons an updated layered look to better fit the Liquid Glass aesthetic.

‌iOS 27‌ will be released in just about a month.
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With the fifth beta of iOS 27, Apple has expanded the voice customization options for Siri AI.


Pace and Expressivity can now be adjusted for more of the available voice options instead of just the two American voices.

There are seven American voice options and four British voices to choose from, all of which can be customized with different Pace and Expressivity settings. Pace changes talking speed, while expressivity changes emphasis.

‌Siri‌ AI voice customization is done on-device, so the feature is limited to newer iPhones. You need an iPhone 17 Pro, ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max, or iPhone Air to use voice customization on an iPhone.

It's available on Macs with an M3 chip or newer and at least 12GB RAM, and the M4 iPad Pro and newer, also with at least 12GB RAM.
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Apple is scaling back its hardware shipment plans in 2026 due to DRAM shortages, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today.


Kuo made the comment in a longer piece disputing a recent report suggesting TSMC has $1 billion of unpackaged processors waiting on memory chips that Apple has been unable to secure. Kuo said Apple plans processor production at least three months in advance based on the amount of memory expected to be available, and it does not have TSMC build large numbers of wafers ahead of time. He believes there are indeed memory shortages, but no situation where TSMC is sitting on unused inventory.

In other words, tight memory supply is real. But my understanding is that there has been no dramatic scenario in which TSMC first built up US$1 billion of WIP and then had to wait for memory to arrive before packaging could proceed. TSMC and Apple are both known for world-class execution, and such a dramatic development would be unusual given how closely the two companies coordinate their supply chains.

Memory shortages have already affected the Mac Studio, Mac mini, and MacBook Air, and it sounds like ongoing supply problems will also impact the upcoming iPhone models. Memory makers have been prioritizing supply for AI data centers because contracts for those chips are more profitable, leaving less capacity available for consumer device chips.

A lack of supply has driven prices up and led to long wait times for some products. Apple raised prices on all of its Macs and iPads in June, and iPhone prices are expected to go up in September.

The iPhone 18 Pro, ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and foldable iPhone Ultra could be available in limited quantities because of the memory problems, and we expect the devices will sell out during the preorder period.
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Apple today provided developers with the fifth beta of macOS Golden Gate, with the update coming two weeks after Apple seeded the fourth beta.


Developers can download ‌macOS Golden Gate‌ by going to System Settings > General > Software Update. Beta Updates will need to be enabled, and a free developer account is required.

‌macOS Golden Gate‌ includes multiple design improvements. Liquid Glass opacity has been improved to increase readability, there's a slider for controlling the level of transparency, and changes to shadowing make it easier to tell when a window is active. Apps now have uniform toolbars, edge-to-edge sidebars, and less rounded corners, plus there are fewer icons in menu bars.

Siri has been transformed into ‌Siri‌ AI, a chatbot-style assistant that combines general world knowledge, your personal data, and onscreen awareness to answer questions about anything and find information for you. ‌Siri‌ lives in Spotlight, and you can ask questions with the new Search or Ask interface.

There's also a ‌Siri‌ app where you can chat with ‌Siri‌ and view past conversations, and on newer Macs, you can set a custom voice for ‌Siri‌ with personalized pace and expressivity. Visual Intelligence is now on the Mac so ‌Siri‌ can answer questions about what's on your screen, and a Write with ‌Siri‌ feature lets ‌Siri‌ generate text or give feedback on your writing.

There are AI photo editing tools in the Photos app, AI tab organization in Safari, an option to use AI to automatically update weak passwords in the Passwords app, and a revamped Image Playground app that can generate photorealistic images.

More on all of the new features in ‌macOS Golden Gate‌ can be found in our macOS Golden Gate roundup.
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Apple today released a new beta of macOS Tahoe 26.6.2, which is available to developers and public beta testers. The ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.6.2 beta comes just a few days after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, a security update.


Developers and public beta testers can download the software by opening the System Settings app and then navigating to the Software Updates section.

According to Apple's release notes, ‌macOS Tahoe‌ 26.6.2 includes security fixes for the Mac.

The prior update, macOS 26.6.1, fixed a vulnerability that could allow an attacker to authenticate to Screen Sharing without valid credentials.

Update: This article previously said macOS 26.6.2 had been released, but it turns out the update is a beta.
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Apple today released new betas of iOS 26.6.1 and iPadOS 26.6.1, which are available to developers and public beta testers. The iOS and iPadOS 26.6.1 betas come two weeks after the launch of iOS 26.6, an update that added Spotlight optimizations ahead of iOS 27.


iOS 26.6.1 and iPadOS 26.6.1 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update.

According to Apple's release notes, iOS 26.6.1 includes security fixes for the iPhone and iPad. The updates are available in a beta capacity only right now.

Apple is wrapping up work on iOS 26 because ‌iOS 27‌ is launching in just about a month. ‌iOS 27‌ is available to developers and public beta testers ahead of its public debut.

Update: This article previously said iOS 26.6.1 and iPadOS 26.6.1 had been released, but it turns out the updates are betas.
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Apple today seeded the fifth betas of iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 to developers for testing purposes, with the update coming two weeks after Apple released the fourth betas.


Registered developers can download the betas from the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad by going to the General section and selecting Software Update.

‌iOS 27‌ introduces Apple's smarter version of Siri, ‌Siri‌ AI. ‌Siri‌ AI is a chatbot similar to ChatGPT, incorporating general world knowledge, personal data from apps like Messages and Mail, and onscreen awareness to answer questions and find information for you.

There are new Apple Intelligence features in apps like Photos, Safari, Shortcuts, Wallet, and Passwords, plus Apple added a standalone ‌Siri‌ app that houses ‌Siri‌ conversations. Write with ‌Siri‌ is available systemwide for generating text or offering feedback on your writing, and Visual Intelligence has been relocated to the Camera app with a new ‌Siri‌ mode.

Apple improved the look of Liquid Glass and added a slider for customizing transparency. There are multiple performance improvements to speed up iOS, so everything feels faster, even on older iPhones. Apps launch quicker, AirDrop transfers are faster, the keyboard pops up more quickly, and devices are better at transitioning between Wi-Fi and Cellular to keep you connected.

For more on what's new in ‌iOS 27‌, we have a dedicated iOS 27 roundup.
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Apple today seeded the fifth beta of watchOS 27 to developers, with the update coming two weeks after the launch of the fourth beta.


The beta can be downloaded through the Watch app on the iPhone with a free developer account. The Apple Watch will need to be on the charger, connected to Wi-Fi, and have a battery level of 50 percent or above for new software to be installed. The beta is available for all Apple Watch models compatible with ‌watchOS 27‌ except for the Apple Watch Ultra 3.

‌watchOS 27‌ gains Siri AI, the smarter, more capable version of ‌Siri‌. ‌Siri‌ can hold back-and-forth conversations, plus it has access to general world knowledge and your personal data to answer questions and find information. ‌Siri‌ AI on Apple Watch requires an iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence, including the iPhone 15 Pro and later.

There's a new Dynamic app grid that highlights ‌Siri‌ suggested apps, and more intuitive Smart Stack Suggestions. You can find your parked car, see pinned messages, get noise alerts, and view identity and transit cards.

Liquid Glass has been updated to improve legibility, and Workout Buddy works on the Apple Watch even when an iPhone isn't nearby. Workout Buddy also gains new metrics like progressive increases to distance, pace, or duration. Apple added a new all-in-one Find My app with support for Precision Finding, and there are performance optimizations that improve battery life.

More on what's new in ‌watchOS 27‌ is available in our watchOS 27 roundup.

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Apple today seeded the fifth beta of tvOS 27 to developers for testing purposes, with the update coming two weeks after Apple released the fourth beta.


The beta can be downloaded and installed through the Settings app on the Apple TV. A free developer account is required.

tvOS 27 has few new features compared to the other 27 software updates, but it does add a redesigned Podcasts app, options for larger text, and a more responsive Control Center.

AirPlaying to an ‌Apple TV‌ from another Apple device is faster, and apps and animations are smoother. You can also now see AppleCare coverage details in the Settings app.

More on the features in tvOS 27 can be found in our Apple TV roundup.
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Apple today provided developers with the fifth beta of an upcoming visionOS 27 update for testing purposes, with the beta coming two weeks after Apple released the fourth beta.


visionOS 27 can be installed by opening the Settings app, going to Software Updates, and opting into Beta Updates.

visionOS 27 introduces Siri AI, the smarter and more capable version of ‌Siri‌ that's similar in capability to chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude. On the Vision Pro, ‌Siri‌ can answer questions about anything the wearer is looking at, and there's a new ‌Siri‌ orb that can be placed anywhere in wearer's virtual space.

Panorama photos can be turned into spatial environments, and there's a new Icelandic Thórsmörk environment that features dramatic mountains, valleys, and glaciers, along with the northern lights. Web Environment support allows developers to create 360-degree environments in Safari for a more native Vision Pro browsing experience.

App windows are now curved to provide a more immersive workspace, and Control Center has been reorganized to make system controls easier to find. Apple added a smaller widget size, and notifications automatically expand when the wearer looks at them.

More on what's new in visionOS 27 is listed in our Vision Pro roundup.
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OpenAI today said it is "pausing" activities involving its upcoming AI model Astra, because its cyber capabilities are potentially too dangerous. OpenAI says its newest internal evaluations show "significant advancements in agentic coding and cybersecurity," and it cannot rule out "critical cyber capabilities." Prior OpenAI models, including GPT–5.6 Sol, were labeled as "High."


Astra triggers stricter guidelines in OpenAI's "Preparedness Framework." The guidelines call for caution when developing frontier AI capabilities that create risks of severe harm, and the cybersecurity portion of the framework says OpenAI will implement extra safeguards for models that "create new risks of scaled cyberattacks and vulnerability exploitation."

The "Critical" threshold Astra may have hit is defined by an ability to identify and develop functional zero-day exploits of all severity levels in many hardened real-world critical systems without human intervention, or devise and execute end-to-end novel strategies for cyberattacks.

OpenAI says it is increasing its safeguards and security controls before deploying Astra, including limiting work on the model until new safeguards are in place. The company plans to use isolated testing environments with restricted network and tool access, along with adding sandboxed execution and more monitoring capabilities. OpenAI says it will work with relevant government agencies and AI safety organizations to test Astra.

"We're committed to working alongside governments, safety institutes, and civil society to ensure that the frontier capabilities of models like Astra, and those that follow, are deployed responsibly and broadly for the benefit of all humanity," writes OpenAI.

Astra wasn't formally announced, but OpenAI shared details on its next major model in a recent post outlining its mathematical advancements. Astra solved 10 open problems in math and theoretical computer science for around $2,000 (in Sol API rates).

Advancements in AI are changing cybersecurity for major tech companies like Apple by unearthing an unprecedented number of bugs. Apple recently limited its bug bounty program submissions because it is having trouble handling the volume.

Models like Claude Mythos are able to suss out critical vulnerabilities, and Apple is one of Anthropic's Mythos partners. Mythos is limited to select companies because in addition to finding vulnerabilities, it has the potential to exploit them.

OpenAI made headlines in July because GPT–5.6 Sol and a "more capable pre-release model" (not Astra) autonomously hacked Hugging Face during internal benchmark testing. Anthropic found Claude had done something similar. Meta this week said it too had an AI model hack another company during a cybersecurity evaluation.
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The iPhone 18 Pro, ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and foldable "iPhone Ultra" could be in short supply this year, leading to long wait times and an initial sellout during preorders.


Semiconductor analyst Tim Culpan says Apple is having trouble getting enough DRAM to finish production of the new iPhone models, and chip supplier TSMC has $1 billion worth of unpackaged processors waiting on memory chips.

Apple's new A20 Pro chips are built on TSMC's 2nm process and use Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module packaging to integrate the processor and DRAM at the wafer level. Unfortunately, that means TSMC needs to have the DRAM on hand for assembly, and it can't be added at a later step. Apple is not able to stockpile finished dies and then add DRAM when it becomes available.

Apple and its assemblers think they can meet initial demand, but retail inventory could sell quickly, leading to prolonged delivery estimates. The chip backlog will delay main logic board assembly and final device assembly, which could impact production at Foxconn and other assemblers.

DRAM has been in short supply for months and has led to long wait times for the Mac Studio, Mac mini, and MacBook Air. Companies that make memory are prioritizing chips for AI data centers because those chips are more profitable, leaving little capacity available for manufacturing chips for consumer devices.

We've had ongoing rumors about manufacturing issues with the ‌iPhone Ultra‌ due to the complexity of the design, and supplies of the new foldable could be the most limited of the three iPhone models. Some reports suggest the foldable iPhone could be introduced in September and then launch later, in October or November, but others say it will be available at the same time as the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and Pro Max.

The ‌iPhone Ultra‌ is going to cost as much as $2,500, but the novel form factor and Apple's new Apple Upgrade pricing option could lead to more people being willing to shell out for the device. Apple is also expected to raise prices for the ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ and ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ Max, and analysts believe the devices could be up to $300 more expensive because Apple is paying more for RAM.

Last year, the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌ Max sold out during the preorder period, and shipping times extended into October. Along with potential production delays impacting supply, there will be no lower-cost iPhone 18 for people to choose this year, putting more pressure on ‌iPhone 18 Pro‌ supplies. Apple is not planning to launch the standard ‌iPhone 18‌ until early 2027.

If you're looking to get one of the new iPhone models in September, it's a good idea to preorder right when the devices become available for purchase to have the best chance of getting one on launch day.
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T-Mobile retired its 2G GSM network on Monday, August 3, which means all three major carriers in the United States have now ended 2G service.


T-Mobile kept its 2G network active because it still had some legacy customers who were using it. Some customers visiting the United States and using international roaming carrier agreements for connectivity also needed 2G for voice calling, but T-Mobile worked with carriers globally to prepare for the end of its 2G network.

Customers who were still on T-Mobile's 2G network were warned well ahead of time about the shutdown and given time to transition. Smartphones, alarm panels, payment terminals, and other IoT accessories that used 2G will no longer function.

AT&T ended support for 2G almost a decade ago in 2017, and Verizon stopped supporting 2G in 2020. Now that no carriers in the U.S. support 2G, legacy devices like the original iPhone will not be able to connect to any cellular network. The iPhone technically lost cellular support in 2017 when AT&T sunset its 2G network, and now the last workaround is gone.

All three carriers also ended support for 3G back in 2022, and have also abandoned early LTE iPhones without VoLTE support.
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Google today added new agentic capabilities to the Gemini-powered "Ask Maps" assistant in the Google Maps app.


Ask Maps can complete multi-step tasks, such as ordering a meal for you on your way home. Google says you can simply say something like "order spicy pad kee mao with seafood for me to pick up on my way home," and Maps will find open restaurants along your route, let you pick one, and add the dish you asked for to your cart so you can review it and check out.

Food ordering is rolling out today with partners like Square and Toast, with Uber Eats integration coming soon.

Ask Maps can also look up information about hotels and events when you're traveling, comparing prices in real time and checking availability for a hotel, then offering up ideas on things to do nearby.

Google says its live updates are coming to transit. A transit widget in Ask Maps offers up-to-the-minute information about delays for bus, train, subway, and ferry rides.

A new Personal Intelligence option in Ask Maps allows the feature to connect to Gmail to factor in upcoming plans without needing specific instruction. Connecting to Gmail is opt-in and off by default. Ask Maps can also remember prior conversations for context if history settings are turned on.

There's a conversational edits option for suggesting new details for the Ask Maps feature. You can tell Maps about an insider tip and Ask Maps will offer the information to others in the community.

Ask Maps is also expanding to Australia, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, and Mexico, along with over 150 countries and territories in English.

The live transit widget, personalized responses, and conversation memory are rolling out everywhere Ask Maps is available. Food ordering, discovering hotels and events, and conversational contributions are rolling out in the U.S., with more countries set to be added later.

Ask Maps is available on the web and in the Google Maps app for iOS.
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