Sonos introduces Sonos 27, a rebranded software platform integrating AI assistants like ChatGPT and new features to enhance multi-room audio experience and streamline user control across devices.
Sonos has rebranded its software platform as Sonos 27 and is using the update to push further into AI-controlled home audio. According to Sonos’ newsroom, the system is a free upgrade for compatible S2 products and is designed to make the company’s software layer more visible as the core of its home-audio ecosystem. The move also gives a name to the underlying operating system that powers its speakers, soundbars and headphones. Sonos says the update is intended to tie together sound engineering, software and design under one platform.
The headline feature is Sonos 27mcp, an Early Access connector built on the Model Context Protocol. Sonos says it allows external AI assistants, including ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, to control a Sonos setup once the user authorises access to the account. The company says the feature is currently limited to US English and will expand later. Sonos’ support documentation says compatible AI clients can issue natural-language commands such as playback control, volume changes, grouping rooms and moving audio between products.
The update also adds more practical ways to shift sound around the home. Sonos says portable speakers can now work as temporary wireless rear channels when placed with a compatible Arc or Beam soundbar, then revert to normal use when moved away. A separate headphone-linking feature, launching first with the Sonos Ace Ultra, allows headphones to connect directly to the system so audio can move between speakers and headphones without interrupting playback.
At the same time, Sonos is revising its app after last year’s troubled redesign. The company says navigation is being rebuilt around Home, System and Search tabs, while iPhone users will get a two-finger virtual volume control and broader Siri and Shortcuts integration. An updated iPad layout and later additions such as presets and a system-status view are also planned for later this autumn. The rollout is staggered, and Sonos says some devices may take up to two weeks to receive the update. New hardware is arriving alongside the software, with the Beam Ultra soundbar and Ace Ultra headphones on pre-order for delivery from 29 September 2026.
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