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Apple unveils new Apple TV 4K with Siri AI, A19 chip and $299 price

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Apple unveils new Apple TV 4K with Siri AI, A19 chip and $299 price

On October 13, 2026, Apple announced the next generation of Apple TV 4K (4th generation) in a press release, describing it as its most immersive home theater experience yet. The headline feature is Siri AI, which Apple calls an entirely new version of Siri powered by the next generation of Apple Intelligence. On the Apple TV it runs as a full-screen experience for searching and discovering movies and TV shows, and with built-in far-field microphones users can talk to Siri completely hands-free.

Apple's examples show what Siri AI is meant to do. A user can ask "What Apple TV shows won at the Emmy Awards this year?" and see poster art pulled from the Apple TV app, plus follow-up suggestions such as "More award-winning comedies". While watching, users can ask things like "Where was Pluribus filmed?" or "Is this appropriate for a 15-year-old?", and answers appear in a compact overlay so the show keeps playing. With an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone, Siri AI can tap into personal context for requests like "Play the show Alinda recommended."

On hardware, the new box has three far-field microphones with echo cancellation meant to isolate a user's voice while audio is playing. The A19 chip delivers up to 50 percent faster CPU performance and up to 2x faster GPU performance than the previous generation, and includes a new dedicated AV1 decoder for more efficient streaming with less bandwidth. The new Siri Remote keeps its familiar design and adds Find My support with Precision Finding and an option to play a sound on the remote.

For audio, users can for the first time build a four-speaker surround sound setup with Apple TV 4K (4th generation) and HomePod mini 2. HomePod (2nd generation) speakers also work, as long as the front and rear speaker pairs match. The speakers recognize their position in the room and calibrate timing and levels automatically.

As a home hub, Apple TV 4K gets Apple Intelligence-generated camera activity descriptions and summarized notifications in the Home app. With a compatible doorbell, notifications appear on the TV so users can see who is at the door, speak with them and control other accessories. Users can also use Siri AI to control accessories and scenes hands-free, and the box has built-in Wi-Fi and Thread. Apple also lists customizable iCloud photo screen savers and a new screen saver shuffle feature.

On privacy, Apple says microphone data is processed in Secure Exclaves, protected runtimes that tvOS, apps, the user and Apple cannot access. Siri requests can use on-device processing or Private Cloud Compute, where Apple says data is neither stored nor made accessible to Apple or anyone else.

Pricing and availability: customers in the U.S. and 29 other countries and regions can pre-order from October 13 at apple.com/store and in the Apple Store app, with in-store availability beginning Friday, November 13. The price is $299 in the U.S., or $49.83 per month for six months. Siri AI is a beta on Apple TV 4K (2nd generation or later) and is available at launch in English in the U.S., Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and the UK. The new Siri Remote is also sold separately and is compatible with Apple TV HD and Apple TV 4K.

Key facts

  • Apple announced the Apple TV 4K (4th generation) on October 13, 2026, with pre-orders open the same day and availability beginning November 13.
  • It costs $299 in the U.S., or $49.83 per month for six months; pre-order is open in the U.S. and 29 other countries and regions.
  • Siri AI, which Apple describes as an entirely new Siri powered by the next generation of Apple Intelligence, runs full-screen on the TV and is a beta available at launch in English in eight countries.
  • The A19 chip offers up to 50 percent faster CPU and up to 2x faster GPU than the previous generation, plus a dedicated AV1 decoder.
  • Four HomePod mini 2 speakers can form a surround setup with the box for the first time; the new box has three far-field microphones for hands-free use.

Why it matters

Apple is putting its rebuilt Siri, branded Siri AI, in the living room and making the TV box the place where it shows up as a full-screen, conversational way to find and ask about what to watch. Apple also presents the box as a step in its home strategy: a home hub with Apple Intelligence-generated camera descriptions, a surround sound system built from small HomePods, and a chip with a dedicated AV1 decoder. Apple's own framing is that this is its most immersive home theater experience yet.

Who it affects

Buyers of a new Apple TV 4K in the U.S. and the 29 other countries and regions where pre-order is open. Owners of an Apple TV 4K (2nd generation) or later can get Siri AI as a beta too, per Apple. HomePod owners and buyers are affected by the four-speaker surround option. Households with HomeKit cameras and doorbells get the new Home app summaries, which depend on an eligible iCloud+ plan for video descriptions. The EU is a gap on the iOS and iPadOS side: Apple says Siri AI will not be initially available there on those systems.

How to use it

Pre-order from apple.com/store or in the Apple Store app; in-store availability begins Friday, November 13. The price is $299 in the U.S., or $49.83 per month for six months. Siri AI arrives as a beta in tvOS 27.2 and requires the owner of the home in the Home app to have an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone or iPad on the latest software, with Siri AI turned on and set to a supported language. Hands-free far-field microphone support for Siri varies by region and language; Apple lists Mandarin Chinese, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Hebrew, Norwegian and Swedish as supported primary tvOS languages. For surround sound, Apple says it takes four HomePod mini 2 speakers, or four HomePod (2nd generation) speakers with matching front and rear pairs.

How solid is it

This is Apple's own press release, so the specs, prices and dates are firm as announced, while the performance and quality claims are Apple's. The CPU and GPU gains are "up to" figures against the previous generation, with no benchmark methodology given and no previous-generation chip named. No independent reviews or third-party reactions are included. Siri AI itself is labelled a beta.

Risks and caveats

Siri AI is a beta and is available at launch only in English in the U.S., Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and the UK. Apple notes that certain Apple Intelligence features that rely on server-side models are subject to daily usage limits, and that expanded access will be available for a fee in the future; no amount is given. Personal context requests require a paired Apple Intelligence-enabled device. Some Home features, such as video summaries, depend on an eligible iCloud+ plan and are available for a limited number of cameras. The privacy claims about Private Cloud Compute and Secure Exclaves are Apple's own statements. Apple notes that some features may not be available in all regions or languages.

“The new Apple TV 4K is our most immersive home theater experience yet”

— Bob Borchers, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing