MacBook Air won't boot after Sequoia update

Having the same issue.

M1 Macbook Air, the original Sequoia update got stuck halfway even after 8 hours, upon restarting with options, reinstalling the OS does the same thing. Trying to boot up in Safe Boot also leads to the login beachballing and getting stuck.

Net result is that I can't get it to boot up at all right now.

Try and boot the mac in the safe mode to see if you can boot it up from there

Start up your Mac with Apple silicon in safe mode

1. On your Mac, choose Apple menu  > Shut Down.
2. Wait for your Mac to shut down completely. A Mac is completely shut down when the screen is black and any lights (including in the Touch Bar) are off.
3. Press and hold the power button on your Mac until “Loading startup options” appears.
4. Select a volume.
5. Press and hold the Shift key, then click Continue in Safe Mode.
6. The computer restarts automatically. When the login window appears, you should see “Safe Boot” in the menu bar.

I am having the exact same issue (MacBook Pro M1). Laptop is stuck in the screensaver tree screen.

I tried booting up in safe mode (verified it shows on the toolbar) but still doesn’t work.

I was able to solve the issue by following the instructions on Reddit (can’t post the link due to Apple’s guidelines).

But basically you have to go to start options —> terminal —> navigate to the volume “Data” —> Users —> your user —> Library and move the preferences folder to a new location.

Please note that this will erase all your preferences (toolbar appearance) but it’s not too bad.

I have tried this but the screensaver from the new update is still stuck on the screen. The cursor moves but you cant get passed the active screen saver!