After installing macOS 27 Golden Gate, Apple automatically downloads a multi-gigabyte AI model to your Mac when connected to the internet. Unlike previous macOS versions, you can't prevent it — Apple Intelligence is now mandatory.

Apple says the latest features require up to 14GB on Macs with M3 or later and at least 12GB unified memory, and up to 8GB for other enabled Macs. But real-world figures are considerably higher. MacRumors saw 20.67GB allocated on an M4 Pro Mac mini. ArsTechnica recorded 22.42GB on an M3 MacBook Air after a fresh install of macOS 27.0 beta 7.

Macs that don't meet minimum requirements for Apple's most advanced model are also losing unusually large storage. ArsTechnica reported around 14GB on an M1 MacBook Air and MacBook Neo, despite Apple listing only 8GB for that category. One Reddit user showed 30.16GB consumed on their machine. Another reported 24.35GB on a MacBook Pro with M3 Pro chip.

Apple removed the toggle to disable Apple Intelligence, so users must set aside space for on-device models. Mac users can check their reading in System Settings under General Storage by clicking the information button beside macOS.