Siri AI arrives as a beta on September 14 in five of Apple’s six OS 27 releases, in English first, with the same core abilities on each one. The differences are regional and hardware-based rather than functional: Mac and Apple Vision Pro get Siri AI in the European Union, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch do not, Apple Watch has to wait for a later beta build, and Apple TV is not on the list at all.
Apple’s own line is short: “Siri AI is available in beta in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, and visionOS 27.” Everything below comes from Apple’s Siri and Apple Intelligence pages, the June 8 newsroom releases, and the September 9 release that also announced the iPhone 18 Pro.
Key facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Launch | Monday, September 14, 2026, as a beta |
| Platforms at launch | iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, visionOS 27 |
| Not listed | tvOS 27 |
| Launch language | English |
| Added in October | French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish |
| Apple Intelligence languages | 16, including both written forms of Chinese |
| EU at launch | Mac and Apple Vision Pro only |
| China | Siri AI and the other new features are not available while Apple works through regulatory requirements |
| Usage | Server-backed features have daily limits; expanded access will be sold for a fee in the future |
Siri AI by platform
| Platform | Siri AI at launch | Visual Intelligence entry point | In the EU | Apple Intelligence hardware |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| iOS 27 | Beta, English | Siri mode in the Camera viewfinder | No | iPhone 15 Pro and later |
| iPadOS 27 | Beta, English | Built into the screenshot flow | No | iPad Pro and iPad Air from M1, iPad mini with A17 Pro |
| macOS 27 Golden Gate | Beta, English | Dedicated keyboard shortcut | Yes, with a supported language | MacBook Neo, or Apple silicon from M1 |
| visionOS 27 | Beta, English | Ask Siri about whatever you look at | Yes, with a supported language | Apple Vision Pro from M2 |
| watchOS 27 | In a later beta build | None listed | No | Series 9 and later, Ultra 2 and later, SE 3, paired with an Apple Intelligence iPhone |
| tvOS 27 | Not listed by Apple | None listed | Not applicable | None published |
Apple opened Siri AI to developer testing on June 8 across iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 and visionOS 27, and said watchOS 27 would follow “in a future watchOS 27 beta.” That ordering is the reason the Apple Watch Series 12 is the one platform where Apple has not committed to the assistant being ready on day one.
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What every platform gets
The assistant itself is the same product wherever it runs, and Apple describes five abilities:
- Personal context: it searches across your apps, including Messages, email and photos.
- Broad world knowledge: up-to-date information from the web on virtually any topic.
- Onscreen awareness: answers about the content on your screen.
- Systemwide app actions: drafting an email from scratch, or editing and sharing a set of photos.
- Conversational responses: detailed answers and natural back-and-forth, typed or spoken.
Two companion features travel with it on all five platforms. The Siri app gathers your conversations in one place and syncs history through iCloud, so a chat begun on a Mac continues on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch or Apple Vision Pro. Write with Siri drafts text from scratch or gives feedback on what you wrote, matching tone and punctuation for the recipient in Mail and Messages, and Proofread works systemwide.
Where the platforms differ
Visual Intelligence is the clearest split, because each platform needs a different way in. On iPhone it is a Siri mode in the Camera app that starts a visual search from the viewfinder. On iPad it is folded into the screenshot experience. On Mac it has a keyboard shortcut. On Vision Pro you look at something and ask.
The other differences are hardware tiers. Voice customization (pitch, speed, tone and accent) and the improved on-device Dictation model need what Apple calls its advanced on-device model, which is a shorter list than plain Apple Intelligence support.
| Platform | Advanced on-device model requires |
|---|---|
| iPhone | iPhone 18 Pro, 18 Pro Max, iPhone Duo, 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air |
| iPad | M4 or later with 12GB or more unified memory |
| Mac | M3 or later with 12GB or more unified memory |
| Apple Vision Pro | M5 |
A few Siri AI features are narrower still. Call Context, which surfaces a reservation code or confirmation number while you are on the phone with a business, is English only. Siri AI in CarPlay depends on your vehicle. Hands-free Siri AI on the new AirPods 5 needs iOS 27 and an Apple Intelligence iPhone rather than the earbuds alone. Live Translation, by contrast, is already live in Messages, FaceTime captions and phone calls.
The EU and China split
Apple’s wording on Europe is explicit: “Mac and Apple Vision Pro users in the EU will be able to access Siri AI when set to a supported language,” and “Siri AI will not be available initially in the EU in iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS.” Apple says it is working to find a path forward that preserves privacy and security, and it has not given a date.
For China, Apple says “Siri AI and the other new Apple Intelligence features will not be available in China while Apple works through regulatory requirements.” Product pages do not name the country, using the softer line that some features may not be available in all regions or languages. Several smaller features are geofenced too: Apple Cash bill splitting and Maps Local Lists are United States only, Tap to Share is not available in the European Economic Area, and Voice Control in English covers the US, Canada, UK and Australia.
What Apple has not said
Apple has not said when Siri AI leaves beta, which languages come after the five due in October, when the EU gets it on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, or when China gets it at all. It has not priced the “expanded access” it says will be sold for a fee, and it has not published per-feature daily limits, saying only that they vary by feature, request complexity and system demand. There is no statement on whether Siri AI is coming to Apple TV, and no watchOS beta date for developer testing.
The next step is to update on Monday, September 14, which is free on every platform. If you want the full picture of what shipped on September 9 alongside the software, our event recap and the iOS 27 release date coverage have the hardware and the timing.
