The app, available from today, allows users to read complete messages, receive call notifications, and even send voice messages straight from their wrist.

The Meta-owned platform said this was driven by long-standing user requests. “This new experience will help you stay on top of your chats without needing to pull out your iPhone,” WhatsApp wrote in its announcement, adding that the app “will now support many requested features.”

For the first time, WhatsApp users can view full message threads directly on their watch instead of just previews. They can also record and send voice messages, react to incoming messages with emojis, and view clearer images and stickers on the display. 

The app also expands chat history visibility, allowing users to scroll through previous messages more easily.

All personal conversations and calls remain protected with WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption. The company reaffirmed its focus on privacy, saying the new app “maintains the same level of security users expect across all devices.”

The Apple Watch version is compatible with Series 4 or later models running watchOS 10 or newer. Users who have automatic downloads enabled will find the app installed automatically once linked with their iPhone, though a manual installation through the Watch app is also available.

The rollout follows WhatsApp’s focus on cross-device functionality. In May, the company released its long-awaited iPad app, offering group calls for up to 32 people, screen sharing, and multi-camera use.

WhatsApp confirmed that more features will be added to the Apple Watch app in upcoming updates. “We look forward to delivering even more useful functionality for people with Apple Watch in the future,” the company said.

With this release, WhatsApp joins Snapchat and Telegram in expanding messaging access to wearables. However, unlike its competitors, WhatsApp now provides full chat access, message reactions, and clearer media previews, giving it a noticeable edge on Apple’s smartwatch platform.

The restructuring will see leadership roles reshuffled across its services, hardware, and health divisions.

Eddy Cue, senior vice president of Services, will now oversee Apple’s health and fitness divisions, and this could boost the company’s reported plan to launch a new subscription service, Health+, in 2026. 

The upcoming service is expected to provide personalised coaching across fitness, sleep, nutrition, and mental health, revealing Apple’s goal to turn wellness into a profitable, recurring-revenue business, much like Apple Music or iCloud.

Jeff Williams, who once led Apple’s health initiatives and was important in building the Apple Watch into a health-focused product, handed the COO role to Sabih Khan, formerly vice president of Operations, back in July. With Williams’ exit drawing near, Apple is redistributing his remaining responsibilities. 

According to Bloomberg, software chief Craig Federighi will take charge of watchOS, while hardware head John Ternus will lead Apple Watch engineering, an appointment that analysts see as a strategic nod to Ternus’s potential as a future successor to CEO Tim Cook, who turns 65 next year.

Again, Jay Blahnik, Apple’s fitness chief, will now report to Sumbul Desai, vice president of Health. This comes when an internal probe into the workplace is being conducted. Both executives previously reported directly to Williams. 

The New York Times earlier revealed that Blahnik was sued by a former employee who accused him of enabling a toxic work environment, an allegation that has placed additional issue on Apple’s corporate culture.

Meanwhile, Johnny Srouji, senior vice president of Hardware Technologies, is reportedly “evaluating his future at the tech giant”, months after his team delivered Apple’s first in-house modem, an achievement in the company’s long effort to reduce dependence on Qualcomm.

Sources reveal that Apple’s leadership transition could extend beyond Williams. Other top executives, including Lisa Jackson, who oversees Environment, and John Giannandrea, head of Artificial Intelligence, are rumoured to be considering retirement.

With a starting price of $19.99, users can now include up to three devices, and add more for $5.99 each, creating a more flexible and economical approach to tech protection.

This new bundle is different from Apple’s traditional AppleCare+ model, where each device required a separate plan. For users who own several Apple products, such as an iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, AppleCare One could potentially cut monthly protection costs by as much as $11 compared to individual AppleCare+ plans.

“Built on the trusted foundation of AppleCare+, AppleCare One extends that same reliability and makes it easier than ever to protect the products you love and depend on like iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, combining simplicity and exceptional value,” said Bob Borchers, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing.

The plan offers everything available under AppleCare+, including unlimited repairs for accidental damage (like spills and cracked screens), battery coverage, and 24/7 priority access to Apple-certified experts.

A major expansion comes in the form of Theft and Loss protection, which now extends beyond the iPhone to also include the iPad and Apple Watch.

Again, AppleCare One allows users to add older Apple devices, up to four years old, as long as they’re in good condition. To ensure eligibility, devices may undergo a diagnostic test either through a connected iPhone/iPad or directly at an Apple Store. This removes the previous limitation of enrolling only within 60 days of purchase.

Device management is also getting a smarter upgrade. If you trade in a covered product through Apple, the new device automatically replaces the old one under your plan. You can swap products in and out of your coverage as your tech life evolves.

It’s important to note that coverage is tied to your Apple account, meaning only devices recognised within your ecosystem can be added. Headphones, for example, must be less than a year old to qualify, and single-device users still have the option to stick with traditional AppleCare+.

AppleCare One launches July 24 across the United States. Customers can enrol via their iPhone, iPad, or Mac, or visit any Apple Store for assistance.

This is the most interesting visual change since iOS 7, but this time, Apple has integrated the new aesthetic across every platform, iPhone, iPad, Mac, Watch, Vision Pro, and Apple TV, creating a seamless, glass-like experience that adapts dynamically to user interaction and surroundings.

Apple describes Liquid Glass as translucent, reactive, and context-aware. For example, tap an alert, and it expands fluidly from your finger’s location. 

Scroll through menus, and the interface shimmers like real glass catching the light. The colours of the UI change in real time depending on background content and lighting conditions.

The lock screen and home screen shows this transformation, with effects that mirror physical properties of glass, not for spectacle, but for functionality. 

Apple has been under pressure lately with legal cases around App Store control, an AI race it’s losing, and growing developer dissatisfaction have left the company needing to regain trust.

This update is a strategic correction.

Goodbye Numbers, Hello Years

A second major change revealed at the WWDC25 event is in how Apple names its operating systems. iOS 26 is not the 26th version, but the 2026 edition, the year is now part of the name.

This applies across the board: iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26, and macOS 26, the latter keeping its tradition with a location-based codename: Tahoe.

The Games App: Apple’s New Social Hub

Another revelation from WWDC25 was the launch of the Games app, Apple’s first serious attempt at centralising gaming experiences across its platforms. 

It acts as a hub, combining your game library, achievements, and friend activity. One new feature, “Play Together”, lets users challenge friends or join real-time sessions. “Challenges” bring competition into otherwise solo titles.

Apple says gaming on its devices is no longer a secondary experience.

iOS 26: Intelligence and Intuition

iOS 26 introduces smarter communication features, like Call Screening, which waits for a caller to speak before deciding whether to ring through. Hold Assist keeps you connected on long holds and notifies you once someone returns to the line. Every element, even emoji, is more expressive, letting users build custom icons through Genmoji combinations.

There’s also a live translation feature for calls across language barriers, and improvements in messages including shared backgrounds, group polls, and Apple Cash transactions in group chats.

MacOS Tahoe and iPadOS 26: 

MacOS Tahoe brings the same Liquid Glass visual overhaul, but more importantly, it makes macOS feel alive. Quick Keys, intelligent Shortcuts, and a clipboard history bring subtle but powerful quality-of-life improvements. The Phone app now runs natively on Mac, complete with call history and new call management tools.

On the iPad side, Apple continues to erase the line between tablet and desktop. A new windowing system lets users resize, flick, and tile apps. The persistent menu bar now mirrors desktop systems. Preview, previously mac-only, now arrives on iPad, complete with markup and export options.

If you’ve ever wanted your iPad to behave like a Mac, now it does.

Apple Watch, TV and Vision Pro: Smart Upgrades

WatchOS 26 introduces Workout Buddy, a personalised fitness coach powered by your own workout history. With smarter notifications that adapt volume based on ambient sound, and a new wrist-flick gesture to interact with alerts, Apple is bolstering the wearable experience without bloating it.

TVOS 26 follows the Liquid Glass theme and adds profile-based logins and a karaoke feature using your iPhone as a mic. You wake the device, pick your profile, and return to exactly where you left off, useful in a multi-user household.

VisionOS 26 deepens the mixed-reality playbook. Users can now personalise widgets, maintain window placements, and experience spatial photo views. New accessories include Logitech’s Muse stylus and compatibility with the PSVR2 Sense controller, both signs Apple is finally taking spatial interaction seriously.

Small Upgrades, Big Implications

AirPods are getting studio-quality recording and camera remote functionality. CarPlay now supports widgets, live activities, and tapback message replies. Apple Maps has learned your commute habits, while Apple Wallet now handles digital IDs for travel, excluding flights, and supports reward redemption and instalments.

These show Apple is addressing real-world use cases with intent.

With the Liquid Glass interface, new naming format, and overhaul of gaming, communication, and productivity tools revealed at the WWDC25, Apple is building a unified, intelligent system where the lines between devices blur.

An Apple executive said, “It’s the biggest shift in how our users experience their devices since we launched the first iPhone.”

Here’s a short breakdown of the findings:

Key findings:

1. Overall accuracy:
   • Fitness trackers are most accurate for heart rate tracking (76.35%), followed by step count (68.75%)and energy expenditure (56.63%).
   • The Apple Watch leads in accuracy for heart rate (86.31%) and energy expenditure (71.02%), while Garmin excels in step count tracking (82.58%).
2. Step count accuracy:
   • Garmin (82.58%), Apple (81.07%), and Fitbit (77.29%)show strong accuracy.
   • Jawbone (57.91%)and Polar (53.21%) are less reliable, often mistaking other movements for steps.
3. Heart rate accuracy:
   • Apple Watch (86.31%)and Fitbit (73.56%) perform well.
   • Garmin (67.73%)and TomTom (67.63%) are less accurate, with reduced precision for darker skin tones due to reliance on light sensors.
4. Energy expenditure accuracy:
   • Only the Apple Watch (71.02%)provides strong accuracy.
   • Other brands like Fitbit (65.57%), Jawbone (50.23%), and Polar (53.21%)show moderate accuracy, while Garmin (48.05%) is the least accurate.

Takeaway

While fitness trackers like the Apple Watch and Garmin offer strong accuracy for specific metrics, their overall reliability is moderate (67.40%).

To prevent health anxiety, users should interpret data cautiously, especially for energy expenditure and step counts, and avoid over-reliance.

Enhancing health and emergency communication in its wearable devices, the satellite functionality will allow users to send messages even in remote areas without cellular or internet access. 

This innovation builds on Apple’s initial introduction of satellite communication with its iPhone models in 2022.

To bolster this technology, Apple invested $1.5 billion in satellite provider Globalstar last November, strengthening the improvement of emergency communication.

In addition to satellite features, Apple is reportedly advancing its health-oriented technologies with the introduction of a blood pressure monitoring tool. 

This feature, long in development, aims to provide users with an accessible way to monitor their cardiovascular health. 

Apple has steadily expanded the health functions of its products. The company’s most recent smartwatch, launched in September, includes features to detect conditions such as sleep apnea and provide emergency responses. 

These innovations place Apple at the forefront of integrating technology with health and safety solutions, further distinguishing its services in the competitive wearable market.

While Apple leads in several areas, it faces strong competition from brands like Samsung, whose Galaxy Watch series provides advanced health features, including body composition analysis and ECG monitoring.