If you're waking up late these days and it's not because you overslept, but because your iPhone's alarm didn't go off at all - don't worry, you're not alone. Multiple users have reported a problem affecting some iPhone devices where the alarm doesn't go off or goes off without a sound, causing delays, missed meetings, or an embarrassing call from your boss asking, "So, are you coming into work today?"
The cause of this issue appears to be related to the “attention aware” feature introduced with iOS 17. This feature uses the iPhone’s TrueDepth camera to detect when you’re looking at your phone and automatically adjusts certain settings, like screen brightness or alert volume. The idea is to prevent loud alarms from going off when you’re looking at your phone, but it seems that some phones are deciding that you’re awake even when you’re in a deep sleep.
If you don't want this feature to decide your sleep, you can easily disable it:
1. Open “Settings”
2. Go to “User Capabilities”
3. Click “Face ID & Attention”
4. Disable “Attention-Sensitive Features”
Also, make sure the alarm volume is at maximum and disable the "change with buttons" option, so you don't inadvertently lower the volume during normal phone use.
Until Apple finally fixes this problem, you're better off double-checking or reverting to the classic methods: an alarm clock that rings so loudly it wakes up the whole neighborhood.
Sources: HuffPost