Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference keynote delivered a fast-paced, 92-minute overview of the company’s vision for the coming year. Two primary themes emerged: a new visual design language called Liquid Glass and a broader rollout of Apple Intelligence-powered features across the ecosystem. Apple also announced a shift in versioning, moving to an annual model year approach so that all new operating systems will carry version number 26.

The keynote previewed many features; even more are listed on Apple’s website. Below, we highlight the updates most likely to enhance your Apple experience. For full feature lists and compatibility details, refer to Apple’s pages for each platform:

  • macOS 26 Tahoe: MacBook Air with Apple silicon (2020 and later), MacBook Pro with Apple silicon (2020 and later), MacBook Pro (16‑inch, 2019), MacBook Pro (13‑inch, 2020, four Thunderbolt 3 ports), iMac (2020 and later), Mac mini (2020 and later), Mac Studio (2022 and later), Mac Pro (2019 and later)
  • iOS 26: iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone 11, and later
  • iPadOS 26: iPad (8th generation and later), iPad mini (5th generation and later), iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad Pro 11‑inch (1st generation and later), iPad Pro 12.9‑inch (3rd generation and later), and iPad Pro (M4)
  • watchOS 26: Apple Watch SE (2nd generation), Apple Watch Series 6 and later, and Apple Watch Ultra and later
  • visionOS 26: All Vision Pro headsets
  • tvOS 26: Apple TV 4K

Liquid Glass Refreshes the Apple Interface

Apple’s last major interface overhaul came with iOS 7 in 2013. With Liquid Glass, the company introduces a modern design that leverages today’s advanced hardware and graphics capabilities. The new interface presents a glass-like, translucent aesthetic that reacts fluidly to user input, blurring physical and virtual boundaries.

Liquid Glass spans every Apple platform and revamps interface elements like navigation bars, icons, alerts, sidebars, widgets, menus, etc. It also improves user interactions: alerts emerge from where you tap, context menus display as scrollable lists, and controls expand during use before minimizing automatically.

A First Look at Apple’s Liquid Glass and OS 26 Features

Accessibility remains a consideration. Apple has historically included options to reduce transparency for users who need greater visual clarity. It remains to be seen whether Liquid Glass will require similar adjustments.

iPadOS 26 Bridges the Gap with macOS

iPadOS 26 makes significant strides toward delivering a Mac-like experience on iPad. Key enhancements include:

  • Window management: Apps now support free-moving, resizable windows with support for two-, three-, or four-pane layouts. Familiar macOS-style window controls and Exposé-like overviews are included.
  • Menu bar and Dock: A swipe-down menu bar and folder-stacking in the Dock bring iPadOS closer to macOS usability.
  • Filesystem access: The Files app gains collapsible folders, column views, app-assignment for file types, and folder customization with colors and icons.
  • Preview makes the move: The versatile Mac utility comes to iPad, offering full PDF and image editing with Apple Pencil support.
  • Background processing: Intensive tasks like video exports or large downloads now run in the background while users multitask.

Apple Intelligence Gets a Second Wind

Despite last year’s underwhelming Siri update, Apple is pushing forward with Apple Intelligence across all devices—and opening its on-device AI models to developers. More apps will soon integrate Apple’s privacy-first AI without added usage costs.
Notable Apple Intelligence enhancements include:

  • Visual Intelligence: Interact with on-screen content—look up products, schedule events, or ask ChatGPT questions related to visible elements.
  • Shortcuts gets Apple Intelligence: Apple Intelligence actions can now summarize text, generate images, and perform more complex tasks.
  • Image Playground & ChatGPT: Expanded tools for AI-generated images and stylized artwork.
  • Combine emoji for Genmoji: Combine existing emojis to create custom Genmoji.
  • Messages backgrounds: Chat backgrounds, custom backgrounds, and intelligent polling support in group chats.
  • Messages polls: Group chats in Messages will gain polls—where should we go for dinner tonight? Apple Intelligence will automatically detect when a poll might be helpful and suggest one.
  • Wallet order details: Automatic summarization of order and tracking details.
  • Workout Buddy: A virtual coach in the Workout app, offering real-time motivation, feedback, and stats.

These additions may not be groundbreaking individually, but they collectively enhance daily usability. Developer access to Apple’s models could lead to even more practical innovations in third-party apps.

Live Translation Enhances Global Communication

Live Translation—powered by Apple Intelligence—is now built into Phone, FaceTime, and Messages. It provides real-time voice and text translation, potentially transforming international communication. Whether traveling abroad or working with a multilingual team, this feature could become a valuable tool.

Spotlight Grows More Capable

Spotlight search receives a substantial upgrade. Beyond opening apps and files, Spotlight now enables users to:

  • Perform hundreds of app-specific actions
  • Use “quick keys” (e.g., sm to send a message)
  • Access a built-in clipboard manager with recent text, links, and images

These improvements make Spotlight a more viable competitor to popular third-party launchers.

Phone App Adds Call Screening and Hold Assist

Two practical additions are coming to the Phone app:

  • Call Screening: Automatically answers unknown calls, gathers caller details, and prompts you to respond.
  • Hold Assist: Detects hold music and offers to wait on your behalf, notifying you once a human is on the line.

Thanks to Continuity, these features are coming to iOS and will also be available on macOS 26 and iPadOS 26.

 

Dismiss Notifications with the Flick of a Wrist

A welcome but straightforward enhancement: rotating your wrist away from the screen now dismisses notifications on Apple Watch. It’s a small gesture, but one likely to improve day-to-day interaction.

While none of these changes are revolutionary, they represent a steady evolution across Apple’s platforms. Liquid Glass modernizes the interface, and the expansion of Apple Intelligence signals Apple’s commitment to bringing practical AI features into everyday workflows.

(Featured image by Apple)

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