Apple's iOS 27 update introduces Apple Intelligence but consumes roughly 15GB of internal storage — reports range from 9GB to 16GB. The space is taken even in regions where the AI features are unavailable, such as the EU, leaving users with no functional benefit.
Older models like the iPhone 16 with 128GB storage are hit hardest, with the OS and AI occupying about 30% of capacity. Disabling Apple Intelligence or Siri does not restore the space, and changing the Apple Account region is discouraged because it may require canceling subscriptions or spending remaining balances.
A Reddit-discovered workaround reduces the footprint dramatically: set Siri's language to an unsupported English variant — Canadian, Irish, South African, or New Zealand English — then reboot. Testing with South African English cut Apple Intelligence usage to around 100MB.
Meanwhile, Apple has begun pushing iCloud storage subscriptions more aggressively, encouraging users to pay for cloud backups as local space shrinks.
Source: GSMArena · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing