macOS Sequoia is Available, Bringing iPhone Mirroring, Apple Intelligence, and more to Mac

CUPERTINO - macOS Sequoia, the latest version of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system, is available as a free software update for Mac. macOS Sequoia brings exciting new features, including iPhone Mirroring, which expands Continuity by enabling access to and control of iPhone directly from macOS; big updates to Safari; a new Passwords app; and more. Starting next month, macOS Sequoia will introduce Apple Intelligence,1 the personal intelligence system that combines the power of generative models with personal context to deliver intelligence that is incredibly useful and relevant while protecting users’ privacy and security, a press release stated by Apple. 

Here’s a look at the top features Mac users can experience when they update to macOS Sequoia.

iPhone Mirroring

Working across iPhone and Mac gets even easier with the newest Continuity feature in macOS Sequoia — iPhone Mirroring. Users can now access and engage with their iPhone right from their Mac. Custom wallpaper and app icons appear just like on iPhone. With iPhone Mirroring, users can also swipe between pages on the Home Screen; launch and browse favorite apps; and review and respond to iPhone notifications directly from their Mac. And iPhone remains locked the whole time, so nobody else can access or see what the user is doing. It also works great with StandBy, so users can continue to get information at a glance on their iPhone as they use iPhone Mirroring.

More Surfing Power in Safari

Safari is the world’s fastest browser,2 and it’s even easier to discover new information on the web with the new Highlights feature. Powered by machine learning, Highlights automatically surfaces directions for a location, summaries of articles, or quick links to learn more about people, music, movies, and TV shows. A redesigned Reader allows users to read articles more quickly with a streamlined view, a summary, and a table of contents, and a new Viewer helps users put videos front and center while still giving them full access to system playback controls. With Distraction Control, users can hide items on a webpage that they may find disruptive to their browsing.

Easier Window Tiling

New ways to arrange windows let users stay organized with the layout that works best for them. By simply dragging a window to the edge of the screen, macOS Sequoia automatically suggests a tiled position on the user’s desktop. Users can release a window right into place, quickly arrange tiles side by side, or place them in corners to keep even more apps in view. And new keyboard and menu shortcuts help organize tiles even faster.

A New Passwords App

An all-new Passwords app makes it even easier to access passwords, passkeys, Wi-Fi passwords, and other credentials all in one convenient place on Mac. The Passwords app is backed by incredibly secure end-to-end encryption. It works great with Safari, and seamlessly syncs between all of a user’s Apple devices and Windows with the iCloud for Windows app.
Video Conferencing Updates

During video calls in FaceTime or third-party apps like Webex, users can apply beautiful built-in backgrounds, including a variety of color gradients or shots of the scenery in and around locations like Apple Park in Cupertino, California. They can even upload their own photos to use as a background, And with Apple’s industry-leading segmentation, users will look their best on every call. With presenter preview, users can now see what they’re about to share before sharing it with apps like FaceTime and Zoom.

Coming Soon: Apple Intelligence

Apple Intelligence will transform what users can do with Mac, delivering intelligence that is incredibly useful and relevant to them, while protecting their privacy and keeping them in control of their data. Apple Intelligence will be available on Macs with an M-series chip, harnessing the power of Apple silicon and the Neural Engine to understand and create language and images; take action across apps; and draw from personal context to simplify and accelerate everyday tasks. Writing Tools help rewrite, proofread, and summarize text. Siri becomes more natural, flexible, and deeply integrated into the system experience, and with richer language-understanding capabilities, Siri can follow along when users stumble over their words. Siri can also maintain context from one request to the next. Mac users can type to Siri and fluidly switch between text and voice to accelerate everyday tasks. In addition, with Siri’s extensive product knowledge, users can now get answers to thousands of questions about the features and settings on Mac. With many of the Apple Intelligence models running entirely on device, as well as the introduction of Private Cloud Compute — which extends the privacy and security of Apple devices into the cloud to unlock even more intelligence — Apple Intelligence introduces an extraordinary step forward for privacy in artificial intelligence.

Additional Features

In macOS Sequoia, there are many more unique and useful features added to users’ favorite Mac apps.

Messages

In Messages, users can now schedule messages to send later. Text messages can also come to life with unique text effects that visually amplify words or emoji with animations like “explode,” “ripple,” and “nod,” and users can even tap back with any emoji or sticker they want.

Notes

In the Notes app, users can now record audio and receive a live transcription, making it incredibly easy to capture every detail of a lecture, meeting, or conversation, and Apple Intelligence will automatically generate a summary. Math Notes also comes to macOS Sequoia, enabling users to instantly solve an expression or math problem simply by typing it into the Notes app on Mac.

Maps

In the Maps app, outdoor enthusiasts gain access to stunning topographic maps and a selection of thousands of hikes available across U.S. national parks. Additionally, users can now easily create custom walking and hiking routes with just a few clicks.

1 Apple Intelligence will be available with iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia 15.1 on iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad and Mac with M1 and later, with device and Siri language set to U.S. English. Additional languages and platforms are coming over the course of the next year. Later this year, Apple Intelligence will add support for localized English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K. In the coming year, Apple Intelligence will expand to more languages, like Chinese, French, Japanese, and Spanish.
2 Testing was conducted by Apple in August 2024. See apple.com/safari for more information.