How to fix Apps.app and Spotlight stuck in dark mode on MacBook Air M5 with macOS 27.2?

I switched to another AI - ChatGPT and found the correct answer for this issue and restored it back to the normal appearance. (The Apps.app is deeply integrated with the Spotlight but I forgot to post the screenshots of the Spotlight search bar in my original question. I attached them here now.)

Below is ChatGPT's analysis. (I followed these instructions and finally switched my Spotlight back to the classic look.)

Based on your two screenshots and the fact that the same MacBook displays the original Spotlight interface under another user account, I think we can narrow this down considerably.

My leading suspicion is that your main account has activated the newer Siri-integrated Spotlight interface in macOS 27, rather than simply having a dark-mode problem.

There are three distinct changes in your second screenshot:

1. Appearance: The search field has a black background instead of the translucent, light-colored background.
2. Prompt: The original "Spotlight Search" text has changed to "Search or Ask".
3. Microphone: A microphone icon has appeared on the right.

These changes together are significant.

1. What may have happened?

According to information about macOS 27, Apple has integrated Spotlight with its newer Siri experience.

The new interface:

• Combines traditional Spotlight search with Siri's conversational capabilities.
• Uses the prompt "Search or Ask".
• Provides a microphone for voice input.
• Uses a darker visual design.

2. The most likely cause: Siri AI (Beta) is enabled in your main account

I found something particularly relevant in Apple's macOS 27 documentation.

Apple provides an option to switch between the new Siri AI experience and Siri Classic. According to Apple, switching back to Siri Classic restores the previous Spotlight appearance.

Apple Support (IE)+1

This is a very strong match for your situation.

3. How I suggest you investigate and fix it

Let's start with the least invasive solution.

Step 1. Check your Siri settings

While logged into your main user account:

1. Open System Settings.
2. Select Siri in the sidebar.
3. Look for the Siri AI (Beta) setting or the current Siri experience selection.
4. Check whether the new Siri AI experience is enabled.

Step 2. Switch back to Siri Classic

If Siri AI is enabled, Apple's documented procedure is:

1. Click Turn Off Siri.
2. Confirm by clicking Turn Off Siri again.
3. Click Turn On Siri.
4. Select Use Siri Classic when prompted.



The fact that your issue only occurs in your Main User Account and not in an added user account is significant and strongly suggests there might some specific that is installed and causing this issue  

Restart the computer in Safe Mode  and log into your Main User Account 

Do the issues persist ?

If not, this would be a strong indicator there might be some this party Software that is causing this issue 

To Drill Down further and to avoid a game of 20 questions  

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

The Application is Not a " Silver Bullet "  and is  only a tool to examine the Hardware / Software used on this computer 

This is a Diagnostic Tool that makes no changes to the computer Hardware / Software used on this computer 

The application is free or paid from 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  <<<<

Hi,

Open Terminal.app, then copy the following commands and paste it on Terminal.app after that, restart Mac which could solve your issue.

defaults delete .GlobalPreferences AppleInterfaceStyleSwitchesAutomatically

Thank you for your response. I just ran it in the Terminal but got an error. Error: Could not find key 'AppleInterfaceStyleSwitchesAutomatically' in domain 'kCFPreferencesAnyApplication'.

Defaults have not been changed.

I restarted the computer in save mode to check, the issue still persists. I don't think the issue was caused by something installed. Actually I accidentally removed the Apps.app from the dock, I wanted to restore it back to the dock but mistakenly dragged the entire applications folder instead of the Apps.app to the dock. Later I removed the applications folder from the dock and restored the Apps.app back to the dock. After these operations, the Apps.app was changed to the dark mode, also, it looked a little bit different, the search area was separated from the apps area. I also asked AI for help. As per AI's responses, In macOS Tahoe, Apple replaced the traditional Launchpad with a new built-in interface called Apps.app. Because this application launcher is deeply integrated as a "browse mode" sub-component of the upgraded Spotlight system, it does not maintain its own isolated preference file. Its settings, history, and configuration preferences are located inside the main user Spotlight preference file within your profile. ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.Spotlight.plist. I also tried deleting my profile's com.apple.Spotlight.plist file hoping the system will automatically generate a fresh, uncorrupted version by running these commands "defaults delete com.apple.Spotlight; killall cfprefsd" but it didn't work, the issue still persists. I also tried other ways as per AI, such as Check for a Dark Mode "Override" Key; Clear the Whole Spotlight UI Domain; Clear the Local Layout and Window State Cache; Importing the test account's .GlobalPreferences.plist file; Wipe the Profile's Appearance Triggers; Reset the System Overlay Cache; Clear the Spotlight UI Asset Cache "rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.Spotlight; rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.spotlightUI", etc... after trying all this, the issue still persists. I think the settings of the appearance of the Apps.app with the Spotlight must in some files under my main account profile. If I know this/these file(s) and reset it/them, I think the issue could be fixed.