Just days after shipping macOS 26.3, Apple is already moving ahead with the first developer beta of macOS 26.4.
And while the last update was fairly low-key, macOS 26.4 might be where things start to get more interesting.
Will we finally see new Siri progress?
There were strong expectations that macOS 26.4, alongside iOS 26.4, would showcase the first visible results of Apple’s partnership with Google to power a smarter Siri using Gemini models.
However, a recent report suggests Apple may be spreading those features out across future updates instead of delivering everything at once.
So while this beta cycle could still bring small Siri improvements, the full AI-powered overhaul might not land just yet. Apple appears to be taking a more staged rollout approach, likely to avoid another overpromise-and-delay situation.
New emoji are very likely
If history tells us anything, the x.4 updates are prime territory for new emoji. macOS 26.4 will almost certainly align with iOS 26.4 in this regard, meaning fresh characters should be on the way.
Not headline-grabbing, sure, but always one of the most visible additions for everyday users.
Apple Intelligence and Anthropic’s MCP
Beyond Siri, there’s another interesting angle here: Apple’s continued expansion of Apple Intelligence features.
Earlier builds of macOS 26 introduced early signs of support for MCP, an open protocol created by Anthropic that allows AI systems to interact more deeply with apps and services.
MCP support is already tied into Xcode 26.3 and its new agentic capabilities, so macOS 26.4 could further refine how these AI tools function across the system. If Apple is serious about building a more capable AI ecosystem, this is where the groundwork quietly gets laid.
What this update really signals
Even if macOS 26.4 doesn’t immediately deliver a flashy Gemini-powered Siri, it represents another step in Apple’s broader AI strategy. The company seems focused on incremental infrastructure upgrades first, with user-facing features layered on top later.
Sometimes the most important updates are the ones that clean things up under the hood.
We’ll know more once developers start digging through the build.
