iOS 26, the nineteenth major release of Apple's iPhone operating system, was announced at WWDC on June 9, 2025, and released on September 15, 2025, with its version number jumping to 26 to align with Apple's new year-based naming convention. The centerpiece is the new Liquid Glass design language—the first major UI overhaul since iOS 7—featuring translucent, motion-reactive elements that extend across all apps, along with an adaptive Lock Screen and a "Clear" appearance for icons. Apple Intelligence receives significant upgrades including live translation, enhanced ChatGPT integration for Visual Intelligence (now usable on screenshots), and a framework allowing third-party apps to adopt these features with as little as three lines of code. Apps see major updates like real-time call translation and screening in Phone, AutoMix beat-matching in Music, a redesigned Photos and Camera, enhanced boarding passes in Wallet, and the first new ringtones since iOS 17. However, the release met with mixed reception, as critics and users widely complained about the controversial Liquid Glass interface, performance and battery-life issues, and slower-than-expected adoption rates.