Apple is releasing iOS 27 today, September 14, with the update expected to appear through Settings > General > Software Update at around 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET. The release brings more than 250 changes, but the headline additions center on a rebuilt Siri, expanded Visual Intelligence, Camera app improvements, and a long list of smaller refinements across the iPhone experience.
The biggest change is Siri AI, Apple’s redesigned assistant built around more natural conversations, personal context, and deeper system integration. Siri can draw information from Messages, Mail, Photos, and other apps to answer questions based on the user’s own data, while also taking more actions across apps. Apple is also introducing a dedicated Siri app where users can continue longer conversations and revisit previous interactions.
One practical example is personal-context awareness. A user could ask Siri to find information mentioned in a message or email without needing to specify exactly where it appeared. Apple says the assistant can understand what is currently onscreen as well, allowing users to ask follow-up questions about content they are viewing.
Visual Intelligence becomes much more prominent in iOS 27, particularly inside the Camera app. A new Siri camera mode lets users point the iPhone at an object, place, food item, plant, animal, or document and ask questions about what the camera sees. It can identify subjects, provide information, translate text, extract event details from a flyer, estimate nutritional information, or even help split a restaurant bill.
The Camera interface itself is also changing. Apple has moved quick controls for Flash, Live Photo, and Night Mode to the top center of the screen, while the complete control set is now accessed from the lower-right corner. These adjustments are intended to make frequently used settings easier to reach without cluttering the viewfinder.
Beyond the Camera app, iOS 27 includes broader Apple Intelligence improvements. Apple is expanding generative image capabilities in Image Playground, including more photorealistic output for wallpapers, Contact Posters, and system backgrounds. Siri AI can also assist with editing and writing content in emails, messages, and documents.
Safari gains new organization and notification features, while Apple is also introducing security improvements such as easier handling of compromised passwords. According to Apple, supported credentials can be updated with fewer steps when a password is detected as exposed.
CarPlay also expands in iOS 27. Developers can build new video apps that work while a supported vehicle is parked, navigation apps can provide richer information panels, and supported cars can receive additional route data from navigation apps.
Compatibility remains relatively broad. iOS 27 runs on the iPhone 11 series and newer, as well as the iPhone SE second generation and later. However, the most advanced Siri AI and Apple Intelligence functions are limited to newer hardware, beginning with the iPhone 15 Pro.
Apple is also releasing iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27 alongside iOS 27, reinforcing the company’s strategy of rolling its AI features across the wider ecosystem rather than keeping them confined to the iPhone.
The significance of iOS 27 is not a dramatic redesign. It is the way Apple is embedding AI into tasks users already perform. Siri can understand more context, the Camera can become an AI input device, and Visual Intelligence can turn what the user sees into something actionable.
For iPhone users, that should make iOS 27 feel less like a collection of isolated AI features and more like a system where intelligence is increasingly built into everyday interactions.
