The software is one of the biggest overhauls to the iPhone experience in years, with a striking new “Liquid Glass” design, stronger communication tools, and updates across music, maps, gaming and productivity apps.

Unlike last year’s motivation on artificial intelligence, this version takes a different path: it leans on design, usability, and small but practical changes that directly affect daily use.

Why the Jump to iOS 26?

Apple skipped from iOS 18 to iOS 26, a decision tied to two goals. First, to bring all operating systems, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS and visionOS, into alignment. Second, to reflect the calendar year most people will be using the software. The company wants a unified numbering system across platforms rather than staggered versions.

Liquid Glass: The Visual Overhaul

The most noticeable change is the Liquid Glass interface. Borrowed from the design language of Vision Pro, the new look uses translucent, layered elements that mimic glass. Buttons, menus and icons appear to float, responding subtly to device movement.

During beta testing, users complained about legibility. Apple responded by improving contrast and clarity, though it admits further tweaks may follow. Some users may need time to adapt, as the new layout alters the way apps and menus appear on screen.

Communication and Phone Tools

The Phone app has been redesigned with a cleaner card-style layout. Favourites, recent calls and voicemails are accessible in one view, though users can still switch back to the classic interface if preferred.

Spam calls are less intrusive under iOS 26. The new call-screening assistant asks unknown callers to state their name and purpose before the phone rings, giving the user a choice on whether to answer. The system also includes a hold assist that notifies users when an operator returns to the line.

Messages has caught up with apps like WhatsApp and Telegram by adding conversation backgrounds, polls, typing indicators in groups, and improved spam filtering. Messages from unknown numbers now go directly into a separate folder.

Apps and Productivity

Several Apple apps have received notable changes:

• Games App: Play history, achievements, friend activity and Apple Arcade titles are grouped in one space, with personalised recommendations included.
• Preview App: Arriving on iPhone for the first time, Preview enables easier editing, signing and annotation of PDFs.
• Music: A new AutoMix feature blends songs seamlessly, lyrics can be translated in real time, and users can pin their favourite playlists.
• Maps: Customised routes can now be saved, and the app alerts users if traffic or accidents disrupt their preferred paths. A “Places Library” collects recently visited spots.
• Camera and Photos: The Camera app is simplified to highlight only Photo and Video by default, with other modes hidden but still accessible. The Photos app brings back its old tab structure after user complaints about the previous design.

Smarter Features and AI Integration

Apple has scaled back its AI drive compared with the fanfare of Apple Intelligence in 2024. iOS 26 focuses on smaller but functional uses:

• In-app Translation: Built into Messages, FaceTime and Phone, supporting English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish.
• AirPods Live Translation: Works with AirPods Pro 3, Pro 2, and AirPods 4.
• Visual Intelligence: By pressing Power and Volume Down, users can analyse content on screen, create calendar events, or search context using “Highlight” — Apple’s version of Circle to Search.

Notably, this update creates a small annoyance: the shortcut for visual intelligence overlaps with the screenshot function, forcing users into extra steps to save captures.

Smaller Yet Useful Additions

• Snooze times for alarms can now be customised between one and 15 minutes.
• Wallet supports digital IDs linked to passports, with a redesigned boarding pass screen.
• Voice recording offers voice isolation and source selection, helpful for podcasters.
• Reminders can auto-generate grocery lists from online recipes.
• The App Store now carries “Accessibility Nutrition Labels” to show which apps support VoiceOver, captions, and other features.
• Parental controls block communication from unknown contacts and enforce age limits on third-party apps.

Device Support

The update is available for iPhone SE (2nd gen) and later models, including the iPhone 11 through iPhone 17 series and the new iPhone Air. Older devices such as the iPhone X and iPhone 8 are no longer supported, nudging users toward newer hardware.

iOS 26 is available for download globally from today via Settings > General > Software Update. Apple says some features — particularly translation and visual intelligence — may require additional downloads or be restricted by region.

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The event, set to start at 5 p.m. WAT (10 a.m. PT), promises a lineup led by the iPhone 17 series, including a radically thinner model which is a design shift for the company.

The new iPhone 17 lineup will feature a standard edition, iPhone 17 Pro, Pro Max, and the all-new iPhone 17 Air, which replaces the previous Plus variant. 

Reports reveal the Air model will measure just 5.5mm thick, making it Apple’s thinnest iPhone to date, while sporting a 6.6-inch display and a single-lens rear camera. The device is expected to appeal to users seeking sleek form factors, though compromises on battery capacity are likely.

“I think the thinner design will attract new customers to the iPhone,” an analyst noted, reflecting Apple’s strategy to combine innovation with customer expansion. The Pro versions will undergo a notable redesign, featuring larger camera arrays and aluminium frames, reinforcing Apple’s focus on mobile photography. 

Across all models, the A19 and A19 Pro chips will power faster processing, and ProMotion 120Hz displays may become standard.

Beyond smartphones, Apple is updating its Apple Watch line for the first time in three years. The Series 11, Ultra 3, and SE 3 are all set for release.

The Ultra 3 will reportedly include a larger OLED display, faster charging, and 5G RedCap support, while Series 11 could introduce blood pressure monitoring and Sleep Score analytics. The SE 3 may adopt the Series 9 design, offering a larger screen at a lower price point.

Other expected announcements include the AirPods Pro 3, featuring a compact design, H3 chip, touch-sensitive controls, and heart-rate monitoring. Apple will also likely refresh its HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K, with the latter powered by the A17 Pro chip to enhance streaming and gaming.

Software updates will accompany the hardware rollout. iOS 26 is set to debut new AI-driven features, including live call translation, AI-powered call screening, and the “Liquid Glass” interface. Apple’s Pro models, built with 12GB RAM and advanced cooling, will handle more demanding AI tasks, embedding intelligence across system apps.

The Apple September 9 event is expected to set the stage for Apple’s next three years of iPhone innovation, including foldable devices and curved-glass models leading up to the product’s 20th anniversary in 2027. 

The event will be streamed live at apple.com and via the Apple TV app.

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According to sources, the upgraded Siri will work with an improved App Intents framework, enabling developers to open parts of their apps to voice-based control. This means a user could tell Siri to find a specific photo, edit it, and send it to a contact; add items to an online shopping cart; comment on a social media post; or log into a service – all without lifting a finger.

Early tests are underway with a wide range of apps, including Uber, AllTrails, Threads, Temu, Amazon, YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Apple’s own suite. Developers are being encouraged to adapt their apps now to take advantage of the expanded capabilities before public rollout.

Apple plans to roll out the new Siri in spring 2026, alongside iOS 26.4, the biggest overhaul since the assistant launched in 2011. The feature is part of its strategy to embed Siri more deeply into the company’s ecosystem, spanning iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, AirPods, and Vision Pro. 

There are also plans to leverage processing power across devices to manage complex tasks.

However, not every app category will get full functionality from day one. Banking and healthcare, for example, may have limited integration at launch due to the risks of misinterpreted commands.

If the new system works as planned, it could finally deliver the hands-free, context-aware experience Apple promised more than a decade ago. It’s also a direct challenge to Google, Amazon, and OpenAI in the voice-driven app integration and generative capabilities space.

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The lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that the duo conspired to break into an Apple development iPhone and leak trade secrets from what was then known as iOS 19, now iOS 26.

Apple claims Jon Prosser, known for his YouTube channel Front Page Tech, exploited Ramacciotti’s personal ties to Ethan Lipnik, an Apple engineer, to infiltrate a confidential development device. 

According to Apple, Prosser offered Ramacciotti money or potential job prospects in exchange for access to the unreleased software. Armed with Lipnik’s passcode and location data, Ramacciotti allegedly waited for the right moment, broke into Lipnik’s development iPhone, and broadcast its confidential contents to Prosser via a video call.

In a piece of evidence, Apple reveals an audio message from Ramacciotti to Lipnik, admitting the breach and attributing the plan to Prosser. The recording, Apple says, “detailed the compensation proposed by Mr. Prosser and their plan to acquire Apple information.”

Lipnik, whose failure to report the incident promptly violated company protocols, has since been dismissed.

Prosser’s use of the stolen data went far beyond simple curiosity. Apple asserts that he recorded the screen-share session, created detailed renders of unreleased iOS features, and posted them across his YouTube channels.

These leaks included early looks at Apple’s revamped camera, messaging apps, and the new Liquid Glass design interface. 

Prosser himself was quoted in one of his videos acknowledging the depth of Apple’s internal security measures: “Apple does a lot of clever hiding. Let’s say you’re an Apple engineer: some elements of the OS are forked off into separate teams to prevent a full build from being in your possession, which is also why we never really see iOS leak early.”

While Prosser objects to Apple’s version of events, insisting publicly that “I did not ‘plot’ to access anyone’s phone. I did not have any passwords. I was unaware of how the information was obtained,” Apple is not convinced. 

The tech giant is now seeking damages and a court order to stop Prosser from sharing any more of its confidential materials.

Apple stresses that the development iPhone accessed contained more, beyond just the features Prosser leaked. The company warns that “other unannounced design elements” are at risk, potentially compromising future products.

Ultimately, Apple’s lawsuit portrays Prosser and Ramacciotti as calculated actors who knowingly targeted its trade secrets, bypassed security protocols, and monetised confidential information.

“Defendants’ misconduct was brazen and egregious,” Apple states in its filing, adding that Prosser “profited off Apple’s trade secrets by, at least, sharing them in multiple videos on his business’s YouTube channel, from which he generates ad revenue.”

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At its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2025, the tech giant launched a range of features that could change how iPhones function, from answering calls on your behalf to converting text messages in real-time into foreign languages. 

Let’s begin with what matters most to many users: the Phone app. With iOS 26, Apple is deploying Call Screening, a feature designed to cut through the noise of unknown callers. 

Here’s how it works: if someone calls you and you don’t have their number saved, your iPhone will silently pick up in the background, ask for their name and reason for calling, and only then decide whether to alert you. 

You’ll read what they said and decide if it’s worth your time. For those of us tired of spam and telemarketers, this could be the most practical upgrade in years.

There’s also Hold Assist. If you’ve ever waited endlessly to speak to a human during a customer service call, this one’s for you. iOS 26 can now stay on the line for you while you’re on hold and let you know once a live agent joins. It’s subtle, but incredibly useful, and shows Apple is finally getting personal with real-world pain points.

Another addition is Live Translation, available across Phone, Messages, and FaceTime. You speak your native language, and the system instantly translates and reads it out loud in the recipient’s language. They respond in their own tongue, and you hear the reply translated in real-time. No need for third-party apps. No delay in human connection.

Now, onto Messages; Apple is catching up with group chat demands. You can now create polls right inside a conversation. Want to decide quickly where to meet or who’s bringing what to the party? Start a poll. 

The app can even detect when a poll might be helpful and suggest one. You also get typing indicators in group chats, custom backgrounds, and the ability to send or receive Apple Cash within the thread.

Screening for unknown senders has also been tightened. Messages from numbers you don’t recognise are filed into a separate folder. You can either verify them, ignore them, or delete them. Until you make a move, those messages remain muted. This level of control is new and long overdue.

We also saw Apple push into entertainment territory. There’s AudioMix in Apple Music, a new DJ-style transition feature that blends songs using beat-matching and time-stretching. For those who enjoy karaoke nights, your iPhone is now a microphone, literally. With the new karaoke feature, lyrics sync to Apple TV, your voice is amplified, and your phone becomes the star.

Apple Maps is smarter and it now learns your routine. If you regularly commute to a location, it will predict your route, alert you to delays, and suggest alternatives. You’ll also be able to see all the places you’ve been, sorted automatically under Visited Places, which Apple says is fully encrypted and private.

Wallet gets even more powerful and truly, more convenient. Digital ID is here, allowing you to store a virtual version of your passport or driver’s licence. It’s not a replacement yet, but can be used in apps that require age verification or at select TSA checkpoints. 

Again, Apple is letting you access services like flight tracking and even lost baggage reporting directly from your digital boarding pass.

“Wallet now uses Apple Intelligence to automatically summarise and display order tracking details from emails sent from merchants or delivery carriers,” Apple confirmed.

Photos and Camera get some functional changes too. Tabs are back in the Photos app after user outcry over previous redesigns. In Camera, your most used modes are now upfront, switching between photo and video is faster. Swiping up reveals controls like flash, timer, and resolution. You can move between HD and 4K with a tap.

FaceTime takes advantage of Live Translation as well. When you’re on a video call with someone speaking another language, translated subtitles will appear on screen. It’s smooth, fast, and might make multilingual conversations far less awkward.

On a design level, Apple introduces Liquid Glass, a material that visually responds to its environment. It affects everything from widgets to app icons. There’s a noticeable transition toward personalisation. Your Lock Screen adapts to the photo in use, and your Home Screen now allows deeper customisation.

If you’ve felt iOS updates in recent years were incremental at best, iOS 26 is a different innovation. Apple seems to be embracing not just innovation, but also accountability, listening to user complaints, addressing real-world needs, and rethinking how core apps operate.

So, iOS 26 is built for utility and speed. The features are designed to make your iPhone more human, more helpful, and possibly, more irreplaceable than ever.

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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.”

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There were no huge declarations or tools at the WWDC25, just practical tweaks aimed at improving user experience.

From live call translation to on-device smart summaries, what Apple announced was measured and minimal. Siri didn’t get the overhaul many had expected after last year’s promises. 

Instead, Apple focused on more secure system integration and privacy-led enhancements, nothing that screamed innovation.

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, confirmed developers would now be able to access the on-device large language model embedded in Apple Intelligence. 

“We’re opening up access for any app to tap directly into the on-device, large language model at the core of Apple,” he said. That’s important for privacy, but not necessarily performance.

The on-device model itself is limited. It runs on about 3 billion parameters, small when compared to the power of cloud-based systems used by Microsoft or Google. It can’t process large, complex tasks, which means it is limited in areas where true generative AI is beginning to thrive.

Still, Apple’s strategy is to stay local, stay secure and features like call screening, where iPhones can pick up unknown calls, ask why the person is calling, and then transcribe the response before the phone even rings, are clever. 

So is the live call translation that doesn’t require the other caller to own an iPhone. It’s thoughtful tech, but hardly disruptive.

The redesigned operating systems, featuring what Apple calls a “liquid glass” aesthetic, are another example. It looks sleek, but it’s not revolutionary. It’s enabled by improved Apple silicon, and now all OS platforms, from iPhone to Mac, will adopt a consistent naming convention. The move to names instead of numbers is a way to streamline branding.

Image Playground, which now allows users to generate pictures using ChatGPT, was also showcased. Apple says user data won’t be shared with OpenAI unless the user consents. This cautious collaboration highlights how Apple is trying to balance innovation with its longstanding privacy-first ethos.

What’s missing from all of this is clarity on vision. A year ago, Apple spoke of intelligent agents and a new era of AI. That talk has all but disappeared. Analysts are taking note.

“In a moment in which the market questions Apple’s ability to take any sort of lead in the AI space, the announced features felt incremental at best,” said Thomas Monteiro, senior analyst at Investing.com. “It just seems that the clock is ticking faster every day for Apple.”

That ticking clock got louder as OpenAI, during Apple’s WWDC25 event, announced it had hit $10 billion in annualised revenue. One company accelerating into the AI future, the other inching forward.

Even within the developer community, there are questions. Apple’s Foundation Models Framework allows developers to plug into Apple Intelligence, but only the on-device version. The high-powered, cloud-backed models that could have taken these tools to the next level are staying behind closed doors.

Ben Bajarin, CEO of Creative Strategies, said: “You could see Apple’s priority is what they’re doing on the back-end, instead of what they’re doing at the front-end, which most people don’t really care about yet.”

Investors, it seems, agreed. Apple shares fell 1.2% by the end of the day, hardly a collapse, but a sign that the market wasn’t impressed.

If Apple is laying the foundation for bigger things, it’s doing so without noise. This is a deliberate approach we hope will pay off, not leave the company behind competitors.

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At the centre of the anticipated launch is a complete overhaul of its operating systems’ appearance, a new naming convention, and cautious updates to its much-publicised Apple Intelligence tools.

The interface update, internally dubbed “Solarium,” takes cues from the visionOS used in Apple’s Vision Pro headset.

Early reports suggest users should expect a visually striking “Liquid Glass” look, transparent toolbars, glass-like UI elements, and a system-wide aesthetic meant to unify Apple’s product ecosystem. 

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that this could be “the most dramatic overhaul” in Apple’s software history.

The change doesn’t end there as Apple appears set to abandon version numbers in favour of a year-based naming system. So, instead of iOS 19, we’ll now see iOS 26, aligning with macOS 26, iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, and visionOS 26. It’s a change aimed at better cohesion across platforms.

Though Apple Intelligence dominated WWDC 2024, this year’s event will likely tone down the hype. After falling short on delivering an improved Siri and being condemned for over-promising, Apple is reportedly playing it safe. 

Still, some features, like automatic message translation and improved battery life management using AI, are on the cards. 

The AI features may also help the iPhone learn which apps to prioritise for power efficiency and show a charging time estimate on the lock screen.

iOS 26 will bring visible changes to everyday apps. Messages is tipped to get polls and custom chat backgrounds, while Notes may finally allow Markdown exports, a small but meaningful update for content creators. 

Meanwhile, a standalone gaming app could debut, streamlining Game Center, Apple Arcade, and store-bought games into one interface. Apple is also expected to expand gaming across iPadOS and macOS.

As for macOS, WWDC 2025 rumours point to the end of Intel-era Mac support. Devices like the 2018 Mac mini and 2020 Intel MacBook Air may be cut off. macOS 26, potentially called “Tahoe” will reportedly carry forward the visual overhaul with support continuing only on M1 and newer Macs.

One underreported but essential focus is accessibility. New features include braille-compatible app launching, Live Captions for Apple Watch, and a simplified Reader mode for users with dyslexia and visual impairments. 

There’s also a move to add “accessibility nutrition labels” in the App Store, helping users evaluate app usability before downloading.

The Apple Watch may gain a blood pressure feature and AI-powered notification summaries. However, watchOS support could leave out Series 6, with Series 7 and newer models remaining in play. 

Likewise, iPadOS 26 could drop support for the 7th-gen iPad but bring new multitasking tools and a mobile Preview app for PDF annotation.

Notably absent from this year’s expected announcements is Apple’s long-rumoured smart glasses. While sources say Tim Cook is invested in bringing spatial computing to wearables by 2026, no major reveal is anticipated today. 

However, Apple may quietly begin courting developers for future app support, as it did with the Vision Pro.

And though Apple won’t address it on stage, the impact of US tariffs can’t be ignore. With the Trump administration threatening 25% tariffs on non-US-made Apple products, CEO Tim Cook recently noted a projected $900 million hit this quarter. 

If there’s any mention of Apple’s promised $500 billion domestic investment, it’ll be more political than product-oriented.

Finally, the Apple Design Awards have already named winners across six categories, highlighting the best in innovation, accessibility, and visual design. It’s a quiet nod to the developer community just before the big announcements roll in.

WWDC 2025 officially begins today at 6 p.m. WAT, and developer betas are expected to be released immediately after the keynote. Public betas should follow in July, with full software rollouts likely timed with the iPhone 17 launch this September.

Apple has a lot to prove this year with functionality, reliability, and restraint. 

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