Apple's macOS 27.3 beta puts iPhone-style live updates in the Mac menu bar, so you can control music or watch a timer without opening an app.
Apple is bringing Live Activities to Macs that do not have the new Dynamic Island. The first macOS 27.3 developer beta, released this week, shows them in the menu bar, the strip across the top of the screen. Apple expects the full update in December.
Live Activities are small, live updates that show what is happening right now. The new MacBook Pro models with touch-enabled OLED displays use a Dynamic Island instead of a notch, and it supports them. Other Apple silicon Macs, meaning Macs with Apple's own chips, get a version in the menu bar.
The beta turns this on for Apple Music, Clock and Voice Memos. It also covers things like screen recording. Apple says users can get timely updates at a glance, accept an AirDrop request or pause a song with a tap.
Apple has not said in this material which third-party apps will add support. Developers can build it now, so more apps may follow. The December date is an expectation, not a promise.
Macs running macOS 26 and later could already show Live Activities mirrored from an iPhone. The new update adds them for apps running on the Mac itself.
If you use a Mac, expect timers, music and recordings to show up at the top of your screen when macOS 27.3 arrives, likely in December.
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