iOS 26.5 beta arrives with no Gemini-powered AI features as focus shifts to iOS 27
Source: 9to5Mac
No new Siri and Apple Intelligence features in iOS 26.5
To recap, Apple announced Apple Intelligence in June 2024. It shipped many of the features it showed off as part of:
Personal Intelligence, however, never made the iOS 18 release cycle, nor did the in‑app action and on‑screen awareness features Apple originally announced.
iOS 26 came after iOS 18 as Apple changed the versioning system to reference the year ahead. Now it looks like iOS 27 may be the first time we see Gemini‑powered Siri and Apple Intelligence features.
Today’s iOS 26.5 beta 1 includes no new Siri and Apple Intelligence features. Apple could still surprise us in a future beta, but all signs point to putting everything inside iOS 27.
The first iOS 27 beta is a little over two months away. If Apple felt its Gemini‑powered features would be ready before iOS 27.0’s September release, an update to iOS 26 could deliver them earlier. The issue may simply be that Apple wants more time to develop these new features and is choosing to unveil them with iOS 27.
Upgraded Siri and Apple Intelligence are coming this year
Apple officially delayed its “more personalized” version of Siri on March 7, 2025. At the time Apple said:
“Siri helps our users find what they need and get things done quickly, and in just the past six months, we’ve made Siri more conversational, introduced new features like type to Siri and product knowledge, and added an integration with ChatGPT. We’ve also been working on a more personalized Siri, giving it more awareness of your personal context, as well as the ability to take action for you within and across your apps. It’s going to take us longer than we thought to deliver on these features and we anticipate rolling them out in the coming year.”
Apple later clarified that “the coming year” would push the rollout to at least 2026.
On January 12, 2026, Apple and Google announced a joint collaboration on a Gemini‑powered upgrade to Siri and Apple Intelligence:
“Apple and Google have entered into a multi‑year collaboration under which the next generation of Apple Foundation Models will be based on Google’s Gemini models and cloud technology. These models will help power future Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized Siri coming this year.
After careful evaluation, Apple determined that Google’s AI technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and is excited about the innovative new experiences it will unlock for Apple users. Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry‑leading privacy standards.”
Apple reportedly targeted iOS 26.4 for the first Gemini‑powered enhancements. However, before iOS 26.4’s developer beta release, Mark Gurman correctly reported for Bloomberg that Apple would not make the iOS 26.4 release:
“After planning to include the new capabilities in iOS 26.4 — an operating system update slated for March — Apple is now working to spread them out over future versions, according to people familiar with the matter. That would mean possibly postponing at least some features until iOS 26.5, due in May, and iOS 27, which comes out in September.”
Gurman suggested that Personal Intelligence was most likely to slip until iOS 27. It now appears anything related to Gemini might not make the iOS 26 timeline.
This month’s iOS 26.4 release may be Apple’s last major software update before shifting focus to iOS 27 in June and releasing the finished version in September.
WWDC 2026 is set to kick off on June 8 at Apple Park in Cupertino, California.