Technology
Apple modifies Notification Center swipe gesture in iOS 27 betas to accommodate Siri AI
The upcoming iOS and iPadOS updates reassign the central top-edge swipe, requiring users to swipe from the top-left corner to view alerts.
The short version
- Apple is altering a long-standing navigation gesture in iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 by dedicating the top-middle swipe down to trigger Siri AI.
- When Siri AI is enabled, Notification Center will no longer open from a central top swipe, shifting instead to the top-left corner of the screen.
- The software update is currently in developer and public betas, with a full public release expected this month.
Key facts
- Since iOS 5 was released in 2011, swiping down from the center of the top edge of the screen has been a primary method for opening the Notification Center on iPhones and iPads.[9to5Mac]
- In iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, enabling Siri AI changes this behavior, allocating the top-center swipe gesture to activate the new Siri AI system.[9to5Mac]
- To access the Notification Center with Siri AI enabled, users will have to swipe down specifically from the top-left corner of the screen.[9to5Mac]
- Current beta versions of iOS 27 do not include an option to disable the top-middle swipe shortcut for Siri while keeping Siri AI enabled.[9to5Mac]
What remains uncertain
- It remains to be seen whether Apple will introduce a toggle to disable the top-middle Siri gesture before or after the official public launch.[9to5Mac]