Apple WWDC 2025 Live Updates: iOS 26, Liquid Glass, and More

Apple isn’t sticking to the naming convention of its other software systems for Mac, instead naming it “Tahoe.”

It is, however, getting the “Liquie Glass” treatment.

There’s now the ability to change the color of folders on your Mac.

“You can go with that sleek, clear look, or dial up” the dark aesthetic, Federighi says.

Live Activity updates, such as Uber Eats delivery ETAs in the Dynamic Island on the iPhone, are now coming to Macs too.

With tvOS 26, Apple says the layout is getting more cinematic, with tools that are less distracting and new poster formats.

It also gave a sneak peek of originals coming to Apple TV+, with star-studded offerings, and updates to the karaoke experience on Apple TV with the Apple Music Sing feature, which turns your iPhone into a karaoke microphone.

“Your iPhone becomes the mic, amplifying your voice through TV visual effects that light up when you’re with friends,” Apple says.

Other new features include Workout Buddy, which tracks your exercise history and encourages you using a text-to-speech AI fitness coach.

WatchOS 26 users will have a more personalized recap of their workouts and fitness milestones.

Apple says it’s also improving its “Smart Stack” feature, which surfaces apps or items it thinks you are likely to find useful at a given time.

A new Watch gesture, “wrist flick,” will make navigating notifications as simple as a flick of the wrist.

“You can also use wrist flick to mute incoming calls, silence timers and alarms, or even close the smart stack,” Apple says.

Now for Visual Intelligence, Apple’s AI feature that can detect what’s on your screen or in front of your phone’s camera.

Using the AI program, anything you’re viewing on an app can be searched using Visual Intelligence. All you have to do is take a screenshot and select the search option for results.

Users can tap a part of a screenshot to search a specific product that shows up in the photo. The same process exists for events. Visual Intelligence can view and create an event based on details in a screenshot. You can also ask ChatGPT for information based on your screen.

Apple overhauls its gaming experience with a new app, which the company says is an “all-in-one destination for games and playing with friends.” The app will feature “Challenges,” or new ways to compete with friends in various apps.

There will also be Apple Arcade integration, Apple’s subscription gaming offering.

At the airport, in stores, or online shopping, Apple says Wallet is getting more features to make travel and shopping more convenient.

In nine participating states, you’ll be able to store your ID.

“Digital ID can be used for domestic travel at supported TSA checkpoints, in apps and in person where age and identity verification are required,” Apple says.

Heads up, commuters.

“Your iPhone will adapt to it, and with the Maps widget, you can check your commute. If there’s significant delays, maps will send you a notification with alternate route options, even if you didn’t start directions,” Apple says.

Users will see translations of their music lyrics, and they can pin their music favorites to make them easily accessible.

This looks pretty useful. In messages and calls, you can get a live translation of yourself or recipients, even if they aren’t iPhone users.

For example, a FaceTime sent in one language would be translated in real time.

In iOS 26, you can set your own background for group message threads using Apple’s Image Playground. In your group chat, you can create polls, use Apple Cash, and see when your friends are typing.

There’s also the Unknown Senders feature in Messages, in which unknown senders appear in a dedicated area where you can decide if you want to mark the number as known, ask for more information, or delete.

Unknown senders will be filtered out of your message threads to avoid a cluttered text list.

The Phone app is getting more seamless — and by the looks of it, more private.

In the overhauled app, voicemails, recents, and favorites are combined.

A new Call Screening feature will allow Apple to silently answer unknown calls and give you info to know if it’s worth answering.

In another change, if you’re put on hold during a customer service call — the feature can detect hold music — Hold Assist can keep your spot in line until someone actually is ready to help you.

CarPlay is getting more like an iPhone.

Users can access widgets and their friends’ flights, for example, via their dashboard.

It’s “all done in a way to help you stay focused on the road,” Apple says.

The most used capture features, video and photo, will be easily accessible. The company will also update its Photos app to make finding your media faster.

Apple is unifying its software naming across iPhone, Apple Watch, and iPad to match. So, going forward, it will be tied to the year.

This year’s iOS version, for example, will be “iOS 26.”

The “Liquid Glass” design language in iOS 26 starts off with the home screen and refreshes the look of apps while maintaining that familiar Apple feel, the company says.

Apple announces its “broadest design update ever” — “Liquid Glass,” its new design language across all of its software.

The new is inspired by the look and feel of the Vision Pro, Apple says.

No new features yet, just a recap of what’s already launched.

Federighi says some of the Apple Intelligence features “needed more time to reach our high-quality bar” and more will be launched in the coming year.

However, Federighi says there are more Apple Intelligence features that will be announced today.

Cook, speaking from inside Apple’s headquarters, teases a slate of announcements.

We’re starting with an F1-focused skit — Tim Cook is in it, as is Apple exec Craig Federighi.

Apple’s “F1” movie debuts later this year.

Curious where the audience will be? Photos from earlier this morning show inside Apple Park, where people will watch the pre-recorded keynote together before breaking off into various developer sessions.

At WWDC 2024, Apple demoed a more conversational, personalized Siri that could take on more complex requests. The virtual assistant is still working on its communication skills after its overhaul was delayed to 2026.

“I asked Siri if there’s an Apple event today… she has no idea,” tech reviewer Marques Brownlee said in an X post.

Some users joined in to show how their Siri answered the question, and others compared it to rival chatbots. The assistant directed some to Apple’s official website with event information.

One user said Google’s Gemini said yes and provided a brief summary of what the event is.

“Gemini knows there is an Apple event today. How embarrassing,” the user wrote.

Apple Intelligence made a big splash at WWDC 2024. Since then, it’s had a challenging rollout with delays along the way. Analysts want answers on AI and what’s next, but they aren’t sure Apple will make any big announcements on that front.

“The WWDC announcements will be relatively incremental and muted, perhaps except for a likely visual design overhaul of the user experience,” Forrester analyst Dipanjan Chatterjee told Business Insider on Friday.

Any updates on its AI strategy will be a topic of interest as it “ultimately unlocks the developer ecosystem, which remains the hearts and lungs of the Apple story,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note.

It’s a “critical opportunity” to put analysts’ minds at ease when it comes to tariffs, AI, and hardware plans, said Gadjo Sevilla, analyst at EMARKETER, a sister company to BI.

WWDC attendees got a swag bag of rainbow-colored pins, a water bottle with pink accents, and more, according to one app developer’s social-media post.

One collectible pin features an octopus hovering over a keyboard.

Cook posted his signature sunrise picture over the Apple campus to let followers know he’s up and ready for WWDC.

“See you soon,” Cook captioned the X post.

Apple’s keynote, featuring Cook and other Apple leaders, will stream live on YouTube and on its website starting at 1 p.m. ET.

Apple usually teases some of the announcements from WWDC with a themed announcement. For this year’s conference, guests were invited to take a “sleek peek.”

A play on “sneak peek,” reports have indicated Apple is going to show off a sleeker iOS software design that has been called “Liquid Glass.”