WWDC 2026 is nearly here. On Monday, June 8, Apple will launch a virtual presentation announcing all of its big software features for the next year. Unless the company pulls off a big surprise, we’re heading into the “27” era, which will include iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27. That’s a lot of updates.
The company tends to keep things pretty close to the vest, which means we don’t really know what it will reveal next week. However, there are plenty of leaks and rumors to sift through (reliable ones, mind you) that paint a fairly detailed picture of what WWDC 2026 will look like. Spoiler: Expect a whole lot of AI.
WWDC 2026: AI Siri finally arrives
The showstopping new feature the tech world expects Apple to announce this year is actually something Apple already announced a few years ago: a new Siri, upgraded with AI. Apple originally unveiled this souped-up Siri during WWDC 2024, intended to release with iOS 18. While the company did indeed include some AI features in iOS 18, dubbed “Apple Intelligence,” an AI-powered Siri has been MIA for two years. There’s even been a class action lawsuit about it.
While it might seem a bit foolhardy to put stock in the new Siri’s debut, given Apple’s repeated delays, it really does seem like the upgraded assistant is arriving this year. Rumor has it Apple’s new Siri will be much more contextual, meaning it will understand what’s happening on your screen to help answer your questions. You’ll be able to drag down from the top of your screen at any time to pull up the new assistant, though it will also have a standalone chatbot app should you want a more dedicated AI experience. It’ll feel odd to have an actual Siri app for the first time on iOS, but if Apple really upgrades the assistant in a meaningful way, it makes sense.
Furthermore, the promises of AI Siri from 2024 should still hold: Siri will supposedly be able to take actions on your behalf, like editing an image or sharing files with contacts. It should also be able to dig through your various apps to find relevant information. For example, when you give it a prompt like “What time does my mom’s flight get in?” Siri should know to tap into Messages and Mail to find your mom’s travel itinerary, flight number, and any other sources that might give it the context necessary to answer the question. In this way, Siri on iOS 27 should feel more like using ChatGPT or Gemini. Of course, you can tap into ChatGPT instead of Siri when you want to, and Apple reportedly is using Gemini to power some of these new features.
WWDC 2026: iOS 27
AI Siri will likely be the focus of Apple’s iOS 27 event, but that doesn’t mean the iPhone will miss out on other new features. To keep the focus on AI for a bit, Apple will likely update Apple Intelligence with new features and abilities. Bloomberg reports that Apple is planning a number of natural language-based upgrades that will let you tell iOS what you want to see, so the AI can run actions on your behalf. This will work with generating wallpapers, creating shortcuts, and editing photos.
Speaking of photos, the Photos app is getting two new AI-powered tools: “Reframe” and “Extend.” The former can adjust the framing of a photo, while the latter can expand it with AI-generated imagery. The company is also making small improvements to features like Image Playground and Genmoji, and may introduce a new AI web search tool, similar to Perplexity or Google’s AI Mode.
Interestingly, Apple already announced a slate of new AI accessibility features likely coming to iOS 27. In recent years, the company has revealed accessibility features ahead of the keynote, and this year is no different. This includes the ability to use Voice Control with natural language, automated subtitles on any video, and VoiceOver descriptions of your surroundings, among other new options. While Apple didn’t confirm that these features were arriving with the new update, they almost assuredly are.
iOS 27’s Camera app will be more customizable than ever, with a new widget system to set up the app to your liking. There will also be a new Siri mode that may bring Visual Intelligence features directly to the Camera app, making it more obvious to users who might otherwise miss the feature. AirPods users may also get a more straightforward settings menu, though the company is overdue for a dedicated AirPods app.
iOS 27 should look pretty similar to iOS 26, which may come as a disappointment for any Liquid Glass detractors. That being said, Apple may roll out a new slider that lets you further control the overall appearance of Liquid Glass, building off the options it added with subsequent versions of iOS.
While there will be plenty of new features, you might not see as many as in previous years. Apple may be taking iOS 27 as an opportunity to roll out more stability updates for this year, similar to what it did with Mac OS X “Snow Leopard” back in the day.
What do you think so far?
WWDC 2026: iPadOS 27
The iPad rumor mill is quiet this year. I expect, therefore, all of the above to apply to iPadOS 27: the new AI Siri, new AI features, and stability updates. We might get some surprise big-screen Apple features, but at this time, I expect iPadOS to look mostly like iOS.
WWDC 2026: macOS 27
Like iOS and iPadOS 27, macOS 27’s biggest new feature will likely be AI-based. It, too, will get the new AI Siri, as well as many of the AI upgrades mentioned above. The Photos app on macOS 27 should have the same editing tools as iOS 27, and you may be able to control Liquid Glass with a slider. Really, the two OSes seem more in sync than ever.
That said, the big question is whether Apple will introduce any touch-based elements to macOS 27. The company is working on a touch-based MacBook, which will require the first touch-compatible version of macOS in Apple’s history. The company may show off some of these new changes at WWDC, but it may also hold off until the MacBook’s announcement. WWDC isn’t a hardware event, so Apple likely won’t reveal the new computer itself at this time.
WWDC 2026: watchOS 27
You know the drill: Apple Watch users upgrading to watchOS 27 will get the new AI Siri (assuming your watch supports Apple Intelligence). What that actually means for Apple Watch users is still very much up in the air: The experience should be very different on watchOS (you’re almost certainly not going to be editing photos with AI on the wearable), but we’ll have to see which features get ported to Apple Watch when WWDC kicks off next week.
But watchOS 27 gets some other new features, too. Bloomberg reports that Apple’s stability mindset is coming to watchOS as well, but that the company does intend to take the opportunity to improve heart rate monitoring with this new update. How they will do that remains to be seen, but if Apple can upgrade my heart rate monitoring without me buying a new Apple Watch, I’ll be impressed. Apple may also roll out a new watch face based on a design previously exclusive to the Apple Watch Ultra.
WWDC 2026: tvOS 27
We don’t know much about tvOS 27 updates, although I imagine Apple will roll out some Siri upgrades. However, we do know one new feature on the way: In Apple’s big accessibility announcement, it shared that users will be able to adjust tvOS’ text size for the first time.
WWDC 2026: visionOS 27
Apple Vision Pro fans can expect many of the same updates as iPhone and Mac fans. That means AI Siri, AI features (like photo editing and natural language perks), and stability updates.
