Apple has announced iOS 26 at WWDC 25. That’s right, Apple is skipping a few version numbers and going straight to 26 to match the year. This is happening with all of Apple’s platforms.
iOS 26 and other Apple software will have ‘Liquid Glass,’ an all-new design with glass-like elements, such as app icons with a transparent background. The Liquid Glass design elements reflect and refract their surroundings and will apply to controls, navigation, app icons, widgets, and more. Liquid Glass also brings new customization options to icons and widgets, including a new look.
Lock screen wallpapers have changed, allowing 2D photos to look 3D, even if they were a regular photo. Additionally, the Lock screen widgets will fluidly bend around your wallpaper using the blank space; this is evident with the Clock Widget.
In Apple Music, News and Podcasts, the tab bar is redesigned to float above the user’s content, and dynamically shrink when users are browsing to put content front and center.
The camera has been streamlined with the app highlighting ‘camera’ and ‘video.’ A quick swipe to your right pulls up ‘portrait mode,’ swiping up and down offers other camera features.
When you’re on Safari, web pages flow from the top edge to the bottom of the screen, so you can see more of the page while maintaining frequently used actions like refresh and search.
The phone app has a new unified layout, with ‘Favourites’ highlighted at the top. The keypad and contacts are also at the bottom, in a Liquid Glass overview. Apple has also finally brought call screening, which automatically answers calls from unknown numbers. Once the caller shares their name and the reason for the call, you can pick up or ignore it.
Messages will get new backgrounds that everyone in the conversation can see. There’s also a new Poll feature, and Apple Intelligence will suggest new polls. And now typing indicators are coming to group chats, so you can see when and who is typing in. You can also screen new senders in an unknown sender section in the Messages app. These messages will remain silent until you change them.
Apple Intelligence can also build new Genmojis by combining emojis or using your Genmoji.
Apple Intelligence is also bringing Live Translation into the Messages app, FaceTime and phone calls, which will automatically translate languages on the fly. You’ll hear the translations immediately in phone calls, and it will work even if that person doesn’t have an iPhone.
In Apple Maps, the app will start remembering the routes you take every day. Apple Maps will now give you details if there are delays on your route without you starting the directions. You can also quickly look at your route and set it up as a widget. Maps will also show you Visited Places, so you can quickly glance at places you’ve recently been.
Apple is introducing a new Games app, which you can update and will not miss events in your games. There’s an Apple Arcade tab, so you can see new games coming to the platform. There’s also a library where you can see every game you’ve downloaded. And ‘Together,’ so you can see what your friends are playing, and even challenge them by competing with your score, even in single-player apps.
Vision Intelligence is coming to your screen, allowing you to search for images on your screen. It works by taking a screenshot, and now there’s a Vision Intelligence overlay at the bottom that you can quickly search. Vision Intelligence will also let you create events easily. If there’s something on your screen with a calendar date, Vision Intelligence will suggest making a calendar event, and you can make that event with a click.
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