Apple's WWDC 2026 keynote broke from a longstanding format tradition, abandoning the platform-by-platform structure that has defined the annual developer conference for years in favor of a theme-driven presentation. Previous WWDC keynotes were organized by operating system. Last year's event walked through iOS, watchOS, tvOS, macOS, visionOS, and iPadOS in sequence before closing with a developer-focused segment. This year, Apple scrapped that structure entirely, dividing the keynote into three broad themes instead: Platform improvements, trust and safety, and Apple Intelligence and Siri . The change appears to reflect the degree of cross-platform integration Apple has achieved this cycle, which has been growing for years. When the same features land simultaneously across iPhone, iPad , Mac, and Apple Watch, addressing each platform individually no longer makes obvious sense. While Apple has promoted tight ecosystem integration for years, 2026 seems to be the first year that integration is deep enough to make the old format feel arbitrary. The restructuring was not the only departure from form. Apple devoted more than ten minutes of keynote time to child safety and screen time , an unusually prominent segment that could be seen as a direct response to growing regulatory pressure on tech companies. The new parental controls include mandatory child accounts for users under 13, granular app access permissions, and an Ask to Browse feature requiring children to request parental approval before visiting new websites in Safari. The AI demonstrations in the keynote itself also felt markedly different from their initial look in 2024. Two years ago, Apple did not allow press or attendees to try the new Siri after the event, and The Information later reported that what Apple showed on stage was not a functional demo but an elaborate concept video. This year, the Siri AI demonstrations appeared to run in real time, with presenters visibly waiting for responses and navigating results as they came in. Apple also held live, in-person hands-on demos for media after the keynote, a format that has not featured at WWDC for years, giving the event something of a pre-pandemic feel that stood in stark contrast to the slick, wholly pre-recorded presentations the conference has leaned on since 2020. Following the keynote, Apple held a post-keynote "Tech Talk" session with Craig Federighi, where members of the media could put questions to him directly in a more conversational setting. The visual style of the keynote also differed noticeably from previous years. Apple appeared to move away from the heavily stabilized steadicam footage, with much of this year's presentation visibly shot handheld, giving the keynote a more natural look. Did you prefer the format of this year's WWDC? Let us know in the comments. Related Roundup: WWDC 2026 Tag: WWDC 2026 Related Forum: Apple, Inc and Tech Industry This article, " WWDC 2026 Keynote Marked a Major Departure From Previous Years " first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums
Apple Maps is getting a range of new features in iOS 27 , headlined by an upgraded Flyover experience that uses AI to improve the realism and detail of its aerial imagery. Flyover is a longstanding feature of ‌Apple Maps‌ and lets users explore more than 350 cities in 3D with detailed landmarks, roads, parks, and buildings. Apple described the enhanced Flyover in ‌iOS 27‌ as combining aerial imagery with AI models to produce sharper, more lifelike visuals of cities around the world. In its press release , Apple said the update will make details clearer, from the shapes of individual trees to the way light reflects off the glass of skyscrapers. A new Local Lists feature is also coming to ‌Apple Maps‌ users in the U.S. The feature surfaces curated collections of nearby places based on what's trending locally, including dining spots and places to take kids. Apple says all insights are derived with privacy in mind and are never tied to individual users. ‌iOS 27‌ also expands the Suggested Places feature that arrived in iOS 26.5, allowing users to swipe through more recommendations rather than being limited to two. A Trending Restaurants section will appear in the search screen, and natural language search is expanding to cover routing specifics. A Parked Car widget is coming to the Smart Stack, making it easier to locate a parked vehicle, and Offline Maps is said to be getting update improvements, though Apple has not detailed exactly what those entail. Existing features including Visited Places and Guides are expanding to more countries in ‌iOS 27‌. The Maps app icon has also been refreshed with a new, multi-layered Liquid Glass design. Related Roundups: iOS 27 , iPadOS 27 Tag: Apple Maps This article, " Apple Maps to Get These 10 New Features in iOS 27 " first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums
Apple TV today announced the release date for the sixth season of its popular spy drama series Slow Horses , based on the books by Mick Herron . The show stars Gary Oldman as the leader of a ‘dumping ground’ division inside MI5 known for its blunders more than its successes. Season 6 will premiere on September 16, with new episodes dropping weekly through October 21. The first look image featured above shows Oldman in his iconic form as Jackson Lamb.
