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Apple Watch's always-listening AI tools arrive in the iOS 27.3 beta

The Next Web (TNW) •
November 03, 2026 • 07:15 PM
• By Ana Maria Constantin
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Apple's first iOS 27.3 and watchOS 27.3 betas bring the Watch's always-listening Audio Intelligence, a new Health app and Apple Intelligence for China.

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Apple released the first developer betas of iOS 27.3 and watchOS 27.3. They add Audio Intelligence for the latest Apple Watches, a redesigned Health app pulled from iOS 27.2, and Apple Intelligence for China. The full release is due in December.

Apple has released the first developer betas of iOS 27.3 and watchOS 27.3, putting the Apple Watch’s always-listening AI tools into wider testing, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. The full release is due in December.

The Audio Intelligence features, unveiled in September for the Series 12 and Ultra 4, use the watch’s microphone to follow nearby conversations. Siri Recap turns them into bullet points, while Live Rewind shows a transcript of the last 15 seconds.

The tools work in English only for now. Apple says the audio is processed on the device and not stored, and that the watch plays a sound when Live Rewind is used.

Lawyers in several US states have warned the features could break eavesdropping laws that require everyone in a conversation to agree to being recorded.

The beta also brings back Apple’s redesigned Health app, which it tested in iOS 27.2 but removed in October . It adds a Longevity tab and a Health Age score that estimates a user’s age from their health data, features that rivals such as Whoop and Oura already offer.

iOS 27.3 also carries Apple’s first AI features for China, including writing tools and Genmoji. They leave out Siri AI, which runs on Google models that are not available in China.

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