Overview
- Apple unveiled macOS Golden Gate, identified as macOS 27, at its WWDC 2026 keynote on Monday and posted an official compatibility list that ends support for Intel-based machines.
- The compatibility list permits only Apple silicon Macs, naming the MacBook Neo (2026) and Apple silicon MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro models from 2020 or later.
- Four models that ran macOS Tahoe are explicitly excluded: the 16-inch MacBook Pro (2019), the 13-inch MacBook Pro with four Thunderbolt 3 ports (2020), the iMac (2020), and the Mac Pro (2019).
- Owners of excluded machines can remain on macOS Tahoe and will continue to receive security updates but must purchase an Apple silicon Mac to get Golden Gate’s new features.
- The change completes Apple’s multi-year shift from Intel to its own Arm-based chips and could prompt some users to upgrade hardware, which may boost demand for new Apple silicon Macs this fall.