macOS 27 Golden Gate Is the Last to Support Intel Apps via Rosetta 2 - MacRumors

Skip to Content

macOS 27 Golden Gate Is the Last to Support Intel Apps via Rosetta 2

Wednesday June 10, 2026 5:39 am PDT by Hartley Charlton<br>macOS 27 Golden Gate is the final version of macOS to feature full Rosetta 2 support, meaning the translation layer that keeps Intel-built apps running on Apple silicon Macs is set to disappear entirely with next year's major macOS release.

Golden Gate is the first macOS release limited to Apple silicon Macs and marks the end of the road for Intel-based hardware, but the implications reach Apple silicon owners too.

Rosetta 2 is the dynamic binary translator Apple introduced alongside the M1 chip in late 2020. It currently allows Intel-compiled apps to continue running on Apple silicon without modification. Apple first confirmed this timeline at its Platforms State of the Union during WWDC 2025:

Rosetta was designed to make the transition to Apple silicon easier, and we plan to make it available for the next two major macOS releases — through macOS 27 — as a general-purpose tool for Intel apps to help developers complete the migration of their apps. Beyond this timeframe, we will keep a subset of Rosetta functionality aimed at supporting older unmaintained gaming titles, that rely on Intel-based frameworks.

With macOS 27 Golden Gate now in beta testing, that commitment has reached its final stage. Apple silicon Mac owners running Intel-only apps have one macOS release left before those apps stop working.

Apple began warning users ahead of the cutoff. With macOS 26.4 and 26.5, a system alert surfaces whenever a user launches an Intel-only app, flagging that support will end in a future macOS release. The notifications are designed to give both end users and developers time to find or build native Apple silicon alternatives before the deadline arrives.

Most widely used apps have been updated with native Apple silicon support in the six years since the transition was announced in 2020. Developers and organizations still dependent on Intel-only software, however, will need to find replacements or push for updated builds before macOS 28 ships, or simply remain on macOS 27.

Golden Gate also automatically uninstalls Rosetta 2 if you had it installed in macOS 26 Tahoe, so those who need to continue using it will have to reinstall the feature.

macOS 27 Golden Gate is currently in beta for developers, with a public beta coming next month and launch expected in September.

Related Roundup: macOS Golden Gate<br>Tags: Intel, Rosetta

[ 19 comments ]

Get weekly top MacRumors stories in your inbox.<br>Leave this field empty<br>Popular Stories

Report: Intel is Testing Production of Some iPhone, iPad, and Mac Chips<br>Thursday May 14, 2026 11:48 am PDT by Joe Rossignol<br>TSMC has been the exclusive supplier of Apple's systems-on-a-chip since 2016, but that 10-year streak could be nearing its end. Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today said that Intel has "kicked off" small-scale testing of lower-end iPhone, iPad, and Mac chip fabrication, with production expected to ramp up throughout 2027 and 2028. Kuo did not indicate exactly which of Apple's...<br>Read Full Article &bull; 78 comments

Windows PC Industry Reacts to Apple's Most Affordable MacBook Ever<br>Friday May 29, 2026 8:30 am PDT by Joe Rossignol<br>A few months ago, Apple released the MacBook Neo, its most affordable MacBook ever. At the time, an ASUS executive admitted that the laptop came as a "shock" to the Windows PC industry, which is now in the process of responding. Acer today introduced a Swift Air 14 laptop, with U.S. pricing starting at $699. By comparison, the MacBook Neo starts at $599 with a 256GB SSD and 8GB of RAM, or at ...<br>Read Full Article &bull; 144 comments

macOS 27 Will Mark the End of an Era<br>Tuesday May 26, 2026 7:16 am PDT by Joe Rossignol<br>During its Platforms State of the Union segment at WWDC 2025, Apple revealed that macOS 26 Tahoe is the final major macOS version for Intel-based Macs. The upcoming macOS 27 release will be compatible with Apple silicon Macs only, meaning that you will need a Mac with an M-series chip or a MacBook Neo with an A18 Pro chip in order to install the software update. Apple will unveil macOS 27...<br>Read Full Article

Top Rated Comments

MKSoft<br>29 minutes ago at 05:47 am

Rosetta 2 is more than just a great tool for migrating to Apple Silicon. The M-series Macs are wonderful in that I can used docker containers to build/run ARM and X86_64 Linux containers. This is a big win for developers and makes the MacBookPros so much more valuable as a development tool.

If they drop support for MacOS apps to run, that would be fine, but keep the technology to make the MacOS systems so much more valuable as a developer workstation.<br>Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

mcscot<br>33 minutes ago at 05:43 am

That's a bonus, I swear we were told that it would be discontinued with the next (now Golden Gate) release...