Golden Gate 27.0 slows down MacBook Air M2

Runaway processes and low free storage space are common reasons for Macs to run slow / beachball. 

It is possible there are processes running in the background that are using significant resources. Check Activity Monitor, CPU tab (sort by % CPU) and Memory tab (sort by Memory) to see what's running hard.

Activity Monitor User Guide for Mac - Apple Support

Confirm that you have sufficient free space on your internal storage. The absolute minimum is ~20-25 GB free space, and as a rule of thumb you should aim to have 15-20% of your total internal storage as free space. Terminology is important here – free space is not the same thing as available space. The one that matters is Free space, but what macOS shows in most places is Available space. Available space includes both free space and ‘purgeable’ space, the latter comprises system caches, snapshots and other data that macOS can delete if it decides more free space is needed. However, there is no way the user can force those data to be purged.

The place to check how much Free space you have is in Disk Utility (in Applications > Utilities), by selecting the main container disk below the drive itself (you may need to select View menu > Show all devices to see it). For example, on my M4 MacBook Pro, the Storage settings pane and Get Info on the internal drive show 1.24 TB of Available space, whereas Disk Utility shows there is 1.15 TB of actual Free space, 90 GB less than ‘available’. Although 90 GB is a small fraction of my 2 TB internal storage, that would not be the case with 256 GB or 512 GB of internal storage.

Note that you can also see the Free space in the System Report (System Settings > General > About > System Report button, at the bottom > Storage). 

Some steps to take to safely free up space:

Free up storage space on Mac - Apple Support

Optimize storage space on your Mac - Apple Support

How to free up ‘System Data’ and other st… - Apple Community

If nothing in the above reveals an obvious culprit, then appropriate troubleshooting steps are Safe Mode and creating a new user account to test. 

See if the problem is present when you boot in safe mode. That process performs some system cleanupand clears caches, and also disables 3rd party extensions that may cause problems.

Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support

If that does not correct the issue, test in a new user account. A newly-created user account will have all settings at default, and if the issue does not occur in that new account then it provides guidance on what may need to be changed to correct the issue.

Add a user or group on Mac - Apple Support

Once the testing is complete, the new account can easily be deleted.

Delete a user or group on Mac – Apple Support

If you have 3rd party ‘protection’ software installed, that may be the problem. That includes:

• Cleaners (software claiming to automatically free up space)
• Optimizers (software claiming to make your Mac run faster)
• Antivirus software
• VPN software (unless provided by a school/employer to enable access to internal resources from a remote location)

Such 3rd party system ‘helpers’, ‘cleaners’ and ‘protectors’ do more harm than good. In fact, such products are completely unnecessary for macOS and the only ‘good’ (if you want to call it that) they do is to put money in the developers’ pockets. Cleaners and protectors cause compatibility issues, often after macOS updates. Commercial VPNs claim to hide your browsing activity from websites, and while that may be true those VPN providers just sell your browsing data to others. For the user, all of these types of software offer only harm…and if that is limited to harm to your bank account, then count yourself lucky.If you have installed such software, follow the developer’s instructions to completely uninstall it (note that some developers fail to provide instructions and their software installs can be pervasive, meaning the only way to truly remove it is to erase your Mac, reinstall macOS then restore your user files from a backup). 

It might help to download and run EtreCheck, written by a long-time forum member. The free version is fine. Post the full report using the Additional Text button. No personal information is revealed.

Your three-finger swipe is used to open Mission Control; Apple documents this gesture for Mac trackpads. Apple — Use Multi-Touch gestures on your Mac

Since macOS 27.0 was released, some users have reported slower or less-smooth Mission Control animations and delays when selecting windows. 

These reports do not establish the cause of the behaviour on your Mac.

Because your problems began after upgrading to macOS 27.0, first check System Settings >> General >> Software Update for a newer macOS update. Apple — How to update macOS on Mac 

A major macOS update can also involve background activity after installation, so if the upgrade was recent, some temporary reduction in responsiveness is possible.

Use the Activity Monitor application and select View >> View All Processes. Identify the processes using the most CPU and Memory. 

Often, it’s a combination of processes. 

When the computer uses a lot of CPU and Memory, it may indicate a lack of empty space on the drive. 

In this case, the CPU and memory usage increase as the system searches for empty space to save changes. 

Also, consider the number of Web Browser tabs in use. Each tab may consume significant CPU and memory resources.

View memory usage in Activity Monitor on Mac - Apple Support

If normal trackpad functions such as pointer movement, clicking and scrolling remain responsive while Mission Control is slow or jerky, that would help distinguish this from a more general trackpad problem. 

Based on this symptom alone, there is not enough evidence to conclude that the physical trackpad is defective.

The apps unexpectedly quitting should be considered separately.

If this happens with more than one app, note which apps are affected and whether they quit during a particular action. Apple recommends updating the affected apps and macOS and restarting the Mac when apps quit unexpectedly. Apple — If an app on your Mac stops responding, quits unexpectedly, or won’t open

If the Mission Control problem and unexpected app quits continue after macOS is fully updated and the post-upgrade activity has settled, they would warrant further troubleshooting rather than being attributed to the trackpad alone.

To avoid a game of 20 questions   

Download the Application Etrecheck  ( External Link ) directly from the Developer.

This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer.

It makes a coherent and readable inventory of both the Hardware and Software used on the computer 

The application is free or paid for added features. 

The Report will Not Reveal Any Personal Information. 

Post back the Full Report - Share Report >> Copy , then  paste  >>>> using the Additional Text Icon  <<<<

There are several reasonable avenues to investigate here.

Activity Monitor can establish whether CPU usage, memory pressure, or another process is contributing to the slowdown, while Safe Mode and a temporary user account can help distinguish a system-wide problem from one associated with software or settings loaded during a normal session.

Because the symptoms reportedly began after the macOS 27 upgrade, I would treat storage, background processes, and third-party software as possibilities rather than established causes until testing provides evidence for one of them.

The unexpected application quits are also worth considering separately from the slower animations and Mission Control behaviour, since they could provide additional information about the nature of the problem.

In general, I find it helpful in this type of troubleshooting to distinguish between an observed symptom, a possible cause, and a cause that has been demonstrated through testing.

Maybe some 3rd party add-on or user setting interferes. So try this: backup (Time Machine or some 3rd party like Carbon Copy Cloner or Super Duper), reset to factory defaults, restore only user data files.