iOS 27 Is Officially Out: Siri AI, Liquid Glass, and a Ton of New Features
iOS 27 has been available for download since September 14, and it's arguably the most talked-about update since Apple Intelligence first showed up. The reason is simple: Siri finally got a brain transplant.
Siri You Can Actually Talk To
The headline feature is obviously Siri AI — a completely rebuilt Siri running on generative AI models, working more like ChatGPT or Claude than the old one-shot-command Siri. MacRumors notes Siri AI can now hold back-and-forth conversations, draw on your personal data for context, and even help draft text through a "Write with Siri" feature. There's also a dedicated Siri mode inside the Camera app.
Don't get too excited just yet, though — it's still in beta, only works on devices set to English, and requires at least an iPhone 15 Pro. If your phone's older than that, you'll have to make do with everything else for now.
Liquid Glass Is No Longer All-or-Nothing
One common complaint about last year's Liquid Glass redesign: the glassy effect felt like too much for some people. There's now a slider in Settings to dial it anywhere from "ultra-clear" to "fully tinted," so you can tune it to taste without reverting to the old look entirely.
Genuinely Faster, Too
Beyond the AI stuff, Apple's also claiming noticeable performance gains: apps launching up to 30% faster, new photos showing up in your library up to 70% faster, and AirDrop transfers up to 80% quicker. A couple of smaller additions round things out — Call Context in the Phone app, which surfaces relevant info when you call a business, and Dual Capture in FaceTime for streaming both cameras at once.
What About Compatibility?
iOS 27 runs on every iPhone that supported iOS 26 — from the second-gen iPhone SE and iPhone 11 onward, all the way to newer models like the iPhone Air and iPhone Duo. Just keep in mind Siri AI and the rest of Apple Intelligence are limited to the iPhone 15 Pro and later.
If your phone's on that list, you can grab it right now under Settings > General > Software Update.
