iOS 26 Announcement: Liquid Glass Design and "Wait Time Avoidance AI"—Apple Unveils the Next-Generation iPhone Experience

iOS 26 Announcement: Liquid Glass Design and "Wait Time Avoidance AI"—Apple's Vision for the Next-Generation iPhone Experience

Table of Contents

1. Introduction—The Reason for Jumping from "19" to "26"

2. Features of the New UI "Liquid Glass"

3. Three "Stresses" Solved by Apple Intelligence

4. Revamp of Telephone & Message Functions

5. CarPlay Ultra and the Evolution of In-Car Experience

6. New Features in Apple Music, Maps, and Wallet

7. Game-Dedicated App "Apple Games"

8. Developer APIs and Ecosystem Expansion

9. Supported Devices and Release Schedule

10. Impact on the Japanese Market

11. Conclusion—Redefining the iPhone Experience

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1. Introduction—The Reason for Jumping from "19" to "26"

Apple announced that starting this year, OS names will be synchronized with the "year following the release." Thus, iPhone will have iOS 26, Mac will have macOS 26, and iPad will have iPadOS 26. This reflects the long period of use for software released in the fall until the following year, and will be updated annually with "+1" thereafter.  

2. Features of the New UI "Liquid Glass"

Liquid Glass is a glass-like interface that mimics translucent materials.

• Adaptive Environment Colors: Icons and widgets subtly change their hue in response to wallpaper and ambient light.

• 3D Depth: Icons respond to the angle of tilt, creating a parallax effect that makes them appear to float.

• Home & Lock Integration: The clock on the lock screen automatically fits into the photo's whitespace, and notifications are transformed into floating cards.

  Developers can implement the same texture in their own apps using the Liquid Glass API.  

3. Three "Stresses" Solved by Apple Intelligence

Stress	New Features	Mechanism
Wasting Time on Call Hold	Hold Assist	AI analyzes hold music and alerts with vibration and notification only when the operator returns.
Language Barrier	Live Translation	Real-time bidirectional translation of voice and text on-device with LLM. Supports 9 languages (including Japanese).
Effort of Organizing Information	Visual Intelligence	Extracts objects and text visible on camera or screen, suggesting schedule registration or product search.

4. Revamp of Telephone & Message Functions

• Integrated Layout: The phone app displays "Favorites, History, Voicemail" without tabs.  

• Call Filter 2.0: AI answers unknown numbers, transcribes summaries, and allows connection decisions after spam judgment.

• Message Enhancement

  
  

  • Automatic separation and silencing of unknown senders.

  • Generate avatars with one click + AI-generated backgrounds.

  • Polls and Apple Cash transfers in group chats.  

5. Evolution of CarPlay Ultra and In-Car Experience

The new CarPlay compactly displays incoming calls in a navigation window, and features like Tapback and pinned conversations can be used in the car. Furthermore, "CarPlay Ultra" integrates the car's air conditioning, media, and instruments, unifying the entire screen with a Liquid Glass style.  

6. New Features of Apple Music, Maps, and Wallet

• Lyrics Translation & Pronunciation Guide: Translates original song lyrics into multiple languages and supports pronunciation in a karaoke style.

• Auto-Mix DJ: AI analyzes the BPM between songs for smooth transitions.

• Locais Visitados (Visit History): Automatically records store visits in Maps, with on-device encryption to protect privacy.  

7. Dedicated Gaming App "Apple Games"

Introducing "Apple Games," a centralized management system for owned games, separate from the App Store. It provides game news, event notifications, and social media integration to track friends' achievements.  

8. Developer APIs and Ecosystem Expansion

Material components of the Liquid Glass API, on-device inference calls with Foundation Models, and new App Intents that map one-phrase natural language commands to app-side actions.  

9. Supported Devices and Release Schedule

• Developer Beta: To be distributed immediately in the early hours of June 10th, Japan time.

• Public Beta: Scheduled to start in early July.

• Official Version: Expected to be released from late September to October, coinciding with the launch of the iPhone 16 series.

• Compatible Devices: iPhone 15 Pro/15 Pro Max with A17 Pro and later, iPhone 16 and beyond. Older models will retain the same support period as iOS 20 (2024), but some AI features will be limited.  

10. Impact on the Japanese Market

• Call Culture: Even in Japan, where call center hold times are long, Hold Assist will enhance productivity.

• Multilingual Environment: With the recovery of inbound tourism, real-time translation is expected to be indispensable in tourist information and municipal offices.

• Gaming Market: Apple Games will advance the visibility of mobile e-sports events and could serve as a factor in easing the App Store commission controversy.

• Design Trends: The "transparency × whitespace" UI inspired by Liquid Glass may become a trend in Japanese apps.

11. Conclusion—Redefining the iPhone Experience

iOS 26 has presented a "next-generation iPhone image" both in appearance and content. The visual immersion brought by Liquid Glass and the resolution of "waiting, hesitation, and hassle" through Apple Intelligence are prime examples of upgrading daily life through software rather than hardware dependency. The unification of names based on the year emphasizes a sense of unity across platforms, preparing Japanese developers and users to step into a new phase of creativity.

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Reference Article

• g1.globo.com "iOS 26, AI that bypasses hold music and more" (June 10, 2025)

• Apple Newsroom "Apple elevates the iPhone experience with iOS 26" (June 9, 2025)

• Midland Daily News "Apple unveils iOS 26 with enhanced Apple Intelligence, new Liquid Glass and more" (June 11, 2025)

• Cincodías "Apple announces iOS 26 and new Liquid Glass design at WWDC" (June 9, 2025)

• The Verge "Apple renames its operating systems" (June 9, 2025)