MacBook Air M2 (macOS Sequoia 15.7) not detecting iPad Pro as display target (Sidecar/AirPlay)
I have a MacBook Air M2 running macOS Sequoia 15.7 and an iPad Pro running iPadOS 18.6.
The situation is:
From the iPad I can AirPlay content to my MacBook → works fine.
From my wife’s MacBook Air M2 (macOS Sequoia 15.6) she can see both my MacBook and the iPad as display targets and use Sidecar/AirPlay without any issue.
From my MacBook (15.7) I cannot see either the iPad or my wife’s MacBook as a display target in the Control Center.
Troubleshooting steps already done:
Checked Settings → General → AirDrop & Handoff:
- Handoff enabled.
- AirPlay Receiver enabled.
- “Allow AirPlay for: Everyone”.
- Password required enabled.
- Tested on the same Wi-Fi network (both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz).
- Tested using USB-C cable.
- Checked with Terminal launchctl list | grep airplay:
- com.apple.airplay.mirroring and com.apple.airplay.receiver services are missing.
- Checked with system_profiler SPDisplaysDataType | grep AirPlay:
- Returns nothing.
- Confirmed Mac is personal (not managed by MDM).
- Tried Safe Mode and a brand-new user account → same issue.
Result:
My MacBook seems to be missing the AirPlay/Sidecar daemons, even though I do see the “AirPlay Receiver” option in Settings.
The strange part: other devices can see me, but I cannot see them as display targets from my MacBook.
Question:
Does anyone know why AirPlay services would not be loaded on macOS Sequoia 15.7 on an M2 MacBook Air?
Is this a known limitation (iPad not as target) or could it be a system installation issue that requires a reinstall/Combo Update?
MacBook Air 15″, macOS 15.7
