macOS Golden Gate 27.2 beta contains code referencing new touch-specific gestures in several apps, a possible sign Apple is preparing a touchscreen MacBook that has been rumored as the “MacBook Ultra.” The new entries appear in Safari, Notes, Photos and Quick Look and point to expanded touch handling across system apps.
macOS 27.2 gesture code details
The beta adds specific gesture recognition tools: Safari receives a touch sentinel recognizer; Photos includes PXGTouchDwellGestureRecognizer; Notes has ICTouchPressGestureRecognizer; and Quick Look gains a dragTouch feature. These code references explicitly name touch-oriented gestures within Apple apps.
Could be a touchscreen MacBook—or Sidecar improvements
While the code could indicate hardware support for a touchscreen MacBook, the same gestures are also applicable to Sidecar. macOS Golden Gate previously brought full touch input to Sidecar, and it is possible Apple is expanding those Sidecar features rather than adding touch to a Mac. Touch-friendly changes began with the launch version of macOS Golden Gate, which added pull-to-refresh gestures in Safari, Mail and Calendar.
Rumored MacBook Ultra details
Separately, reports have suggested an OLED MacBook with touchscreen capabilities—possibly called the MacBook Ultra—could arrive as soon as late 2026. The rumored device is said to be thinner and lighter than current models and is expected to include a Dynamic Island and Apple’s M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. The presence of touch-related code in macOS 27.2 is consistent with those rumors but does not confirm them.
