The Apple TV hasn’t received a meaningful update in four years, and the latest rumors suggest the next generation is coming with a pretty generous list of new features.
Reliable sources like MacRumors and 9to5Mac point to at least five major features planned for the new model, and each one significantly changes what we can expect from Apple’s streaming and smart home experience. 🍎
Here they are:
- A17 Pro chip or newer
- More RAM, jumping from 4GB to at least 8GB
- Support for Siri AI, with references already found in tvOS 27 code
- N1 chip with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6
- An updated Siri Remote
What stands out isn’t just the number of changes, but what they represent together.
For the first time, Apple TV is truly stepping into the artificial intelligence era, with hardware and software moving in lockstep to make it happen. 🚀
What the A17 Pro chip actually changes in practice
Bringing the A17 Pro to the Apple TV isn’t just about bigger numbers on a spec sheet. This chip was Apple’s first built on a 3-nanometer process, which means way more power efficiency and processing capability compared to the A15 Bionic in the current model. In practice, this opens the door for the device to handle much more complex tasks without freezing, overheating, or burning through energy unnecessarily — something that matters a lot for a device that stays powered on for hours in your living room.
Worth noting that since the gap since the last model has been so long, there’s a chance Apple could go even further and equip the new device with a more recent chip, like an A18 Pro or even an A19 Pro. Regardless of the exact generation, the leap from the A15 Bionic will be massive. Beyond the more powerful CPU and GPU, these chips bring support for hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which significantly improves graphics rendering in games — especially relevant for anyone using Apple Arcade on their TV.
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Another important piece is the Neural Engine, designed to accelerate artificial intelligence tasks locally — meaning it doesn’t need to rely on the cloud to run language models and pattern recognition. This detail is key when you consider the arrival of Siri AI on Apple TV, because a big chunk of natural language processing can happen right on the device, resulting in faster, more accurate responses with a lot more privacy for the user. Combined with the expected 8GB of RAM, the device will have plenty of headroom to keep multiple processes running simultaneously without any performance dips.
More RAM to handle artificial intelligence
The bump in RAM goes hand in hand with the new chip. The current model has 4GB, and expectations are that the next generation will come with at least 8GB. That doubled memory isn’t a technical luxury — it’s a real necessity for Apple Intelligence features to run smoothly on the device.
Running AI models locally requires a significant amount of memory, and it’s precisely this extra RAM that will allow Apple TV to run Siri AI without relying entirely on an internet connection. With more memory available, the device can also handle multitasking better, keeping streaming apps, smart home functions, and the virtual assistant all active at the same time — without that sluggish feeling that sometimes shows up on devices with more limited hardware.
Siri AI in tvOS 27: what’s hidden in the code
The references to Siri AI found in tvOS 27 code didn’t show up by accident. According to 9to5Mac, when running Device Hub via Xcode on macOS 27, the tvOS 27 app list gained a new entry: Siri itself. This entry includes a string referencing com.apple.campo, and earlier reports indicate that campos is Apple’s internal codename for Siri AI.
Comparing the app lists between tvOS 26 and tvOS 27, it became clear that Siri wasn’t present in the previous version and only appeared now. This combination of factors strongly suggests that Siri AI will debut on tvOS 27, possibly even with a dedicated app on Apple TV — though that’s still not guaranteed, since the app list also includes system-level functions that aren’t directly user-facing.
In practice, imagine asking Siri AI to find that episode of a show you stopped halfway through last week, dim the living room lights to movie mode, and silence your iPhone notifications — all in a single sentence. With Apple Intelligence integrated into tvOS 27, this kind of chained interaction becomes technically viable because Siri gains access to more complex intents and learns to interpret what the user actually wants, even when the command isn’t perfectly worded.
Important to note that Siri AI will likely be limited to the new Apple TV, precisely because of the RAM and processing power requirements. Older models with the A15 Bionic and 4GB of memory almost certainly won’t have the necessary hardware to run these advanced features. 🤖
Wi-Fi 7 and next-generation connectivity
The N1 chip, expected to debut alongside the next-generation Apple TV, is the component responsible for bringing Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 to the device. Back in 2024, Mark Gurman of Bloomberg had already reported that the next model would come with a custom chip combining Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and all signs point to this being the N1, which first appeared in the iPhone 17 lineup and the iPhone Air.
Wi-Fi 7 represents a significant leap over the Wi-Fi 6 found in Apple’s current models. The main difference is its ability to operate across multiple frequencies simultaneously, using the 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands all at once with a compatible device and router. In theory, Wi-Fi 7 can be up to four times faster than Wi-Fi 6, though in practice, actual speeds end up being limited by your internet provider and other environmental factors.
But Wi-Fi 7 isn’t just relevant for people watching movies. In a smart home context, where dozens of devices are connected at the same time, the protocol’s ability to manage multiple connections with far less interference makes a huge difference. The Apple TV functioning as the central hub of your home needs to communicate in real time with cameras, sensors, smart locks, and other HomeKit accessories, and Wi-Fi 7 ensures that data exchange happens reliably. 📡
As for Bluetooth 6, also part of the N1 chip package, it brings important latency improvements over the Bluetooth 5 used in the current model. This directly impacts the experience with the updated Siri Remote, while also opening up possibilities for new types of accessories. The combination of Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 puts the next Apple TV among the best-connected living room devices on the market, well ahead of what was available in the previous generation.
Design and the possibility of a built-in camera
Based on what the rumors indicate, the next Apple TV should maintain a design very similar to the current model, without major visual changes to the box itself. The real evolution is on the inside, in the hardware and software.
Back in 2024, reports surfaced that Apple had discussed the possibility of offering an Apple TV with a built-in camera, aimed at FaceTime calls and gesture controls. However, there’s no solid evidence the company will follow through with that idea for this particular model. For now, the Continuity Camera feature remains the alternative, letting you use your iPhone or iPad camera alongside the third-generation Apple TV 4K for video calls on the big screen.
tvOS has already been steadily improving the FaceTime experience on the television, with features like Contact Posters that display a contact’s personalized photo and name when starting a call, and Live Captions that now work in more languages using on-device intelligence. If the device ever does get a built-in camera, all of these features would become even more complete, eliminating the need for an external device. 🎥
Four years of waiting and what lies ahead
Four years without a significant update is a long time given the pace technology moves, especially considering what happened with artificial intelligence during that period. The delay, in this case, may have been strategic — waiting for the right moment when hardware, software, and AI market maturity were all aligned.
To give you a sense of the gap between launches, here’s when the previous models were announced:
- Apple TV 4K (3rd generation): October 2022
- Apple TV 4K (2nd generation): April 2021
- Apple TV 4K (1st generation): September 2017
- Apple TV HD: September 2015
The Siri Remote update also fits into this logic. Both Mark Gurman and discoveries in macOS 26.7 code point to the new Apple TV arriving with a revamped remote control, though the code hasn’t revealed specific details about what changes are planned. A more capable remote makes total sense in a scenario where Siri AI becomes the primary point of interaction between the user and the system.
When the new Apple TV could arrive
Rumors point to the new Apple TV being revealed between September and October, either at the traditional annual iPhone event or at a follow-up event. Apple is reportedly planning to introduce a trio of new smart home products, including the Apple TV itself, a brand-new home hub in both tabletop and wall-mounted versions, and an updated HomePod mini.
Worth remembering that in June, Apple adjusted prices on 14 products, and the Apple TV 4K was among them. In the United States, the Wi-Fi model with 64GB of storage now starts at 199 dollars, up from the previous 129, while the Wi-Fi + Ethernet version with 128GB jumped to 249 dollars, up from 149 before. It’s still unclear whether the next generation will keep those prices or come in even higher.
For anyone who uses the device as the center of their entertainment and smart home setup, it’s worth keeping a close eye on what’s coming. The combination of A17 Pro, Siri AI, Wi-Fi 7, and everything else that’s been planned points to one of the most significant updates the product has ever received since launch — and one that could redefine what we think of as a connected living room experience. 🎯
