Apple #WWDC26: Introducing Siri AI, Apple Intelligence Upgrades, OS27, and More

The BURO crash course on everything Apple announced at WWDC 2026, including Siri AI and new features from the 2027 software releases. 

Apple’s WWDC has returned for its 2026 edition, bringing with it a massive hoard of updates and new features aimed at making the everyday even better for users. For starters, Siri gets a massive smart upgrade with the introduction of Siri AI. And of course, Siri AI depends on an improved and even more powerful Apple Intelligence, which also brings a suite of next-generation features across platforms. A new series of child safety features make their debut too, making managing content and access to devices easier for parents. Above all, Apple’s OS software ecosystem gets a huge boost across platforms, improving the software design and performance of your favourite devices. Learn more about it all below! 

SIRI AI

Introducing Siri AI, a new and improved Siri, powered by none other than Apple Intelligence. With its arrival comes a bevy of new features that aim to simplify and streamline day-to-day tasks. Drawing on personal context and understanding, Siri AI can provide detailed responses and natural interactions to help you get more done from searching across messages to answering questions about the content on their screen. For example, if you receive an email confirmation for a trip to Bangkok, Siri AI can help the user plan what to pack and create a packing list on the Notes app. On top of personal context understanding, Siri AI can also harness broad world knowledge to provide answers such as when the next snowstorm will hit town.

To make things even more tailored to a user’s needs, Siri’s voice can now be customised to adjust its expressiveness and pace. Plus, with improved speech understanding, Siri will be able to display and write text accurately and as intended even when users speak naturally. 

A DEDICATED SIRI AI APP

Recalling and accessing past conversations with Siri will be made possible thanks to the brand new dedicated Siri app. It utilises iCloud to privately sync conversational history from all of a user’s products, consolidating them into a single app, accessible from any device in their ecosystem. This also means users can continue conversations that began on another device from the one they are currently using. 

SIRI WITH VISUAL INTELLIGENCE

Users may now ask Siri about content they see with their cameras on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro thanks to its powerful image understanding and multimodal capabilities. On iPhone, Siri mode arrives in the Camera app, allowing users to simply point their phone at a subject and tap the shutter button to find out more about what’s in front of them from identifying objects to finding out nutritional information.

Meanwhile, for Mac and iPad users, Siri can answer questions, help with visual search queries, and take action on their screens. On iPad, Visual Intelligence is accessible on the screenshot interface, while Mac users can access it with a keyboard shortcut and type directly to Siri. Apple Vision Pro users, on the other hand, just need to look at whatever they want to find out more about, including content in app windows and physical objects. 

WRITE WITH SIRI

Apple Intelligence’s Writing Tools is now in Siri. Users can work with Siri AI to write anything they need simply by describing the required text to generate a draft and if an edit is needed, Siri can update it with a simple description of the change. Siri can also adopt the user’s usual tone when speaking to specific people in Mail and Messages, including mimicking punctuation use. On top of this, Siri automatically proofreads users’ writing across the system and can suggest improvements in written work. 

ACCESSING SIRI AI

Siri AI will be available across the Apple ecosystem. On iPhone, users can access Siri with the side button, say “Hey Siri”, or from the Dynamic Island. For Mac and iPad users, Siri is integrated into Spotlight and even context menus systemwide. Those on Apple Vision Pro can use Siri AI to compute a 3D visualisation they can place anywhere in their space, which they can simply look at and speak at to start a conversation with Siri. As for those on the move, Siri can always be tapped into with iPhone, Apple Watch, CarPlay, and AirPods. 

APPLE INTELLIGENCE UPGRADES

The next generation of Apple Intelligence has officially arrived, driven by a new architecture that integrates Apple Foundation Models into Apple’s platforms. Below is a quick breakdown of the key improvements and features that we’re most excited about.

PHOTOS

Spatial Reframing is a new groundbreaking tool that allows users to adjust the composition of a photo directly in the Photos app after it’s been taken. Meanwhile, Extend can help expand and straighten images or adjust the aspect ratios without cropping anything out. Plus, the already-existing Clean Up tool also receives some polishing to deliver even more seamless removals and more natural-looking infills. 

To ensure transparency in today’s digital world, photos that have been altered or adjusted using Apple Intelligence will automatically be marked with a hidden SynthID watermark to signify that it has been edited with AI. 

SAFARI

Long gone are the days of countless tabs being open and lost! Apple Intelligence now works in Safari to simplify your browsing by grouping your tabs into relevant topics. For example, those who are shopping for bags while also researching coffee beans will only have two tab groups—Shoes and Coffee—to look at. And Safari will continue to create new groups and add to existing ones as you continue to browse. 

With the Notify Me feature, users can ask Safari to monitor a web page for any changes such as price drops, so they won’t have to miss any updates. Users can also update and strengthen their passwords in the Passwords app that works with Safari and Apple Intelligence to take action. Finally, Describe an Extension allows users to create their own extensions in the toolbar. 

IMAGE PLAYGROUND

Image Playground can generate high-quality images in any style, which now includes photorealistic. While Image Playground can already be used in Messages to generate custom images, it can also now be used to generate Lock Screen wallpapers and Contact Posters. On top of that, users can also choose the aspect ratio of the image they want. Images created in Image Playground will also be marked with a hidden SynthID watermark.

MESSAGES & MAIL

With Apple Intelligence, Messages can suggest actions based on users’ conversations, such as creating a reminder, adding a calendar entry, or searching for photos. In Mail, suggestions also get smarter with the ability to take action in third-party apps and create Smart Replies with the user’s tone and style of writing. 

More information on Apple Intelligence and its features can be found here. 

PARENTAL CONTROLS

To make device access and Internet browsing safer for children, Apple has introduced a range of controls and safety features to make managing content, contacts, and apps easier for parents. It all begins with setting up a child account and using Setup Assistant to decide what to make available now and over time. Communication safety features also allow parents to review new contacts added into their kids’ phones and enable interventions when restricted or violent content is being shared. 

With Ask to Buy and Ask to Browse, parents have the ability to approve or decline new purchases on the App Store and new websites on Safari respectively. Most notably, Time Allowances can help limit daily access across apps with a daily recommendation based on guidance from experts, while Screen Time has been redesigned to give parents an overview of their kids’ device usage. Additionally, Schedules can manage access to apps at different times in the day. 

2027 SOFTWARE UPDATES

Say hello to iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, visionOS 27, and tvOS 27. As usual, Apple has found a way to make our devices and the apps on them even faster, more responsive, and reliable. From the way our photos load to how our AirPods play our music, these enhancements will make even the smallest details in our day even more enjoyable. 

Improvements in speed come to AirDrop, app launch times, photo loading, and even switching between cellular and Wi-Fi. Spotlight also gets better at looking for what you need, while Mail has refined its ranking system for relevance in Top Hits. 

As for software design, things get even more customisable. You can now adjust Liquid Glass with a slider so it can appear ultra-clear, fully tinted, or anywhere in between. App icons have also been given a facelift to appear more defined. Meanwhile, the macOS design has also been updated with a more uniform toolbar across apps, coloured sidebar icons, and more. 

Other key features arriving later this year include:

• iCloud Shared Albums available for cross-platform photo sharing with full-resolution support
• Support for perimenopause and menopause in Cycle Tracking within the Health app
• Custom EQ for AirPods users
• AirPods Pro 3 users can sync their heart rate data to iPhone with expanded Apple GymKit functionality
• A new dynamic app grid on Apple Watch with icons for five Siri-suggested apps
• A new Find My app on Apple Watch combining Find Devices, Find Items, and Find People
• A new tap gesture on Apple Watch to open a widget on Smart Stack
• Turning panoramas into spatial scenes and personal Environments on Apple VIsion Pro 
• A new Flyover experience on Apple Maps for more detailed visuals

Find out more about WWDC 2026 and watch all the latest keynotes here. 

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