Apple News 24 Hours

Last updated: August 25, 2026, 3:05 PM ET

Apple Silicon

Apple unveiled its M6 chip, its first built on a 2-nanometer process and featuring a dual Neural Engine, alongside the M5 Ultra, which Apple calls its most powerful chip ever with a 36-core CPU and 80-core GPU. The M6 debuts in the new Mac mini, while the M5 Ultra powers the refreshed Mac Studio, and the company says the new architecture delivers major leaps in performance and AI compute. The chip's 2nm process is a major step toward an iPhone 18 Pro system-on-a-chip, which will follow later. The M5 Ultra represents a significant leap for high-end Mac users.

New Macs

Apple today announced the new Mac mini, featuring the latest M6 and M5 Pro chips in an unusually timed August refresh, retaining the same compact design as the M4 model it replaces. The M6 base model has a new record-high starting price, while the M5 Pro configuration offers options for users who need more graphics. The updated mini keeps the three-display limit but raises maximum refresh rates, and the M5 Pro gains support for connecting a four external display. Meanwhile, Apple's pricing strategy has shifted, with the M6 Mac mini coming in at a record-high starting price for the lineup. The new M6 model offers a major performance upgrade while increasing the maximum refresh rate for displays.

Mac Studio and Pre-Orders

Apple unveiled next-generation Mac Studio models powered by M5 Max and M5 Ultra chips, with the Ultra supporting up to 512GB of unified memory. Pre-orders opened today ahead of a September launch, with the top-end configuration reaching prices over $18,000. However, one configuration with 512GB RAM won't ship until October, and max price staggers beyond $20k. The high-spec M5 Ultra Mac Studio will launch in October, and it's the most powerful studio Apple has ever built. Alongside the new chips, the Mac Studio update promises substantial AI and graphics gains from the M3 generation. Pre-orders are now open for both machines.

Apple Silicon Details

Apple's new M6 and M5 Ultra chips form the core of today's announcements, with the M6 marking the company's first 2nm processor and the M5 Ultra the most powerful chip it has ever produced. The chips were introduced in a new Mac mini and Mac Studio, respectively, setting the tone for the next year of Apple hardware. The chips offer dramatic improvements across CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine performance, making new AI capabilities more plausible on-device. As a result of the new architecture, the iPhone 18 Pro will gain these upgrades later this year. Apple outlined the details of the new processors and how they deliver a big leap in performance.

Accessories & Peripherals

Alongside the new Macs, Apple expanded its 40W dynamic power adapter to new countries in Europe and Vietnam, offering a solution for fast charging. Apple also quietly updated its Magic Keyboards, replacing the text labels with MacBook-style key symbols across all four models, and keep the price unchanged. The new keyboards feature revised U.S. English labeling with glyph keys for tab, caps, and return instead of text. Apple's legendary Polishing Cloth returned at $9, a $10 discount from its original $19 price, with a new design similar to the prior version. The new keyboards drop text labels for the first time.

Deals and Trade-Ins

The M4 Mac mini base units are now seeing deals up to $500 off with trades while Air Tag 2 drops to $20 each. For those seeking a larger form factor, the M5 Pro MacBook Pro is available with $400 off, and the Air Pods Pro 3 at $120 off. On the other side, iPhone trade-in values have begun to drop ahead of the new model launch prior to the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Ultra announcement. For accessories, Amazon is running a big Labor Day sale with Anker, Sony, and Samsung gear arriving at major discounts. In refurbished stock, Apple offers up to $500 off on select Mac Books and Watches via its official refurb store this week.

Software and Betas

Apple seeded the fifth public betas of iOS, iPad OS, mac OS 27 Golden Gate, and tv OS, stabilizing the upcoming systems. The latest versions include the new Siri AI capabilities, which will now be available behind a waitlist for both developer and public beta testers, and later at release. The new iOS 27 features include three big additions to user experiences like better messaging and accessibility. Apple also released a new support page outlining 50 tips for making devices easier to use for aging users, marking Apple's accessibility push across iPhone, iPads, and Mac. Public betas of iOS, iPad, and more arrive just ahead of the September event. The new public betas are available now for developers.

Siri and AI Experience

When iOS 27 ships next month, users may not gain immediate access to Siri AI, as Apple is preparing the waitlist and expected to continue with public release. The new Siri AI will be delivered progressively, with users entering a queue until the capacity of Apple's on-device environments scale. The same holds for mac OS Golden Gate, which carries its own Siri features, but will also see the waitlist for the new features for users. Apple's also testing a new Siri AI waitlist for heavy features when iOS 27 launches this fall.

Future MacBook

Rumors suggest Apple's high-end MacBook Pro refresh could be far more than that, with new reports pointing to a new "MacBook Ultra with a new OLED display and touchscreen capability. The new high-end laptop will take the spot of the next MacBook Pro, incorporating the M5 chip and coming in late 2026. The change would represent Apple's biggest redesign in years, with a radically different laptop in the fold. Reports are still speculative but strengthen as time passes for the rumored release.

Apple Watch

The Apple Watch Series 12 will feature fitness tracking upgrades and minor changes per Bloomberg, marking incremental changes to the headline feature. These health upgrades could include new metrics for athletes. The device will also likely include the new S-chip to support the new features.

Home & Smart

Apple remains on track to launch its first smart home device with a screen before the end of the year; the home hub will feature a display and can run apps like Home and Face Time, with status light and more. Code reveals the hub will support multiple profiles with ambient sensing for identity retrieval. The home hub will also double as a smart display, ranking as a high-level upgrade to the Home Kit ecosystem. The home hub code reveals face-based profile switching.

iPhone 18 Pro

The new M6 chip gives clues about the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro, which will gain new chip benefits on the phone alongside the high-end A18. The iPhone Ultra might also enter the picture, but key spec details remain unconfirmed. Apple is likely to say the new iPhones feature the A18 Pro, and new features include a camera button and larger battery, among others. However, traders expect the iPhone Ultra might be missing key features like battery and camera upgrades.

AI and Platforms

Sam Altman continues to say that AI still is awaiting its "iPhone moment," but it might need to learn Apple's lesson in user-centric focus before it can take off. OpenAI also restored the five-hour usage limit on Codex and Chat GPT Work, walking back the previous weekly caps to keep service available for 5-hour cap returns for Plus users. Meanwhile, Duck Duck Go's new survey shows users share vast volumes of personal info with AI chatbots, and that apps use little of that protection, a rising privacy concern. With these privacy risks users are increasingly sharing personal data.

Software & App Updates

Apple updated its Final Cut and designed apps to align with the new Macs, and including new Magic Keyboards with the "glyph" system applied to all four. Apple also tweaked the Magic Keyboard's keycaps to match MacBook symbols rather than aliases, which makes it more usable.

Parallels Update

Parallels Desktop 27 for Mac is here, bringing up to 160% faster OpenGL for Windows apps like Blender 4.3, plus AI acceleration on M4-class machines. And for the first time, Open GL 4.3 is supported in a Windows VM on Apple Silicon. Through AI acceleration, the Mac's GPU is now used for Windows AI workloads.

Apple TV & continued

Apple TV goes ahead with a new comedy series called Brothers, starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, which arrives next month, produced by The Office alum. Tom Selleck is confirmed as a new guest star. Meanwhile, Apple’s F1 viewership showed a decline in spring according to Smart TV data, though the numbers do not tell the whole story. The latest Apple TV original will also feature Tom Selleck in a guest role.

New Mac Mini

Apple's new entry-level Mac mini is set to launch before the iPhone 18 Pro event, reportedly in the "coming days." The new Mac mini and the OLED iPad mini are expected in October. The new Mac mini refresh is expected before the company's main event next month.

Security & Privacy

Apple's Emergency SOS Live Video is now available in Brazil along with Rapid SOS, allowing emergency call-takers to request real-time video from iPhone users. The feature is meaningfully expanding select emergency services coverage. On the software side, Apple also removed the long-standing hdiutil Terminal command for disk images, as the deprecation was made in mac OS Golden Gate. The change will affect a rarely-used but convenient tool.

Apple Corporate

Tim Cook steps down as CEO on September 1, and Apple hosted a farewell party ahead of the event and the transition to John Ternau. The party was confirmed by The Information and various partners. While the flagship event is on the horizon, his legacy has not yet been fully written.

More Hardware

The new M6 Mac mini vs M4 model comparison shows the new machine has more ports and better specs. The Mac mini continues to offer the same tiny profile, but its price is an all-time high. The world is also getting the mini's lower max price.

Privacy and Lock

The new MacBook Lock adapters bring cable security to Neo Air Pro users. They utilize the Kensington slot and the anchor to hold.

Home Automation

Apple’s first smart home accessories now include a low-profile lock with Apple Home Key support, as reviewed with the Nuki Smart Lock and Keypad 2 NFC. It’s perfect for renters and other users. On the other hand, Hide My Email will stay totally on iCloud.com after community pushback, as confirmed by Apple. Also in tandem, the secret Apple AI server has been photographed inside.