macbook air will not boot past apple logo

Hi there,

Please try this

If your Mac is stuck on this screen or keeps restarting

If the startup process never progresses beyond an Apple logo or progress bar:

1. Press and hold the power button on your Mac for up to 10 seconds until your Mac turns off. (Every Mac has a power button. On laptop computers that have Touch ID, press and hold Touch ID.)
2. Turn your Mac back on. 
3. If the issue persists, press and hold the power button until your Mac turns off. Then unplug all non-essential accessories from your Mac, including printers, drives and USB hubs. There may be an issue with one or more of these devices or their cables. 
4. Turn your Mac back on.
5. If the issue persists, press and hold the power button again until your Mac turns off. 
6. Use Disk Utility to repair your startup disk.
7. If the issue persists, reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery.

If you need help, contact Apple Support.

I would add another step between #4 & #5. Force another power off. Then try booting the laptop into Safe Mode to see if that makes any difference. If this works, then most likely you have some third party software installed which is interfering with the normal operation of macOS. If Safe Mode doesn't boot either, then resume at step#5 of @WheelieNick's suggestions.

FYI, it is best if you always provide the exact model of the device being used. You can get this information by entering the system serial number on the check coverage page here:

Check Your Service and Support Coverage - Apple Support

And what version of macOS are you using on this laptop?

Was the update a minor update patch like 14.4 to 14.5? Or was it a major upgrade like from 13.x to 14.x?