Apple Intelligence is more deeply integrated across the system, bringing new features that enhance communication, creativity, and productivity. These include Live Translation, expanded creative tools like Genmoji and Image Playground, and smarter automation with intelligent Shortcuts.
The Files app gets a major upgrade, offering improved file organization and customizable folders. Plus, the new Folders in the dock provide quick access to downloads, documents, and more from anywhere on the iPad.
A dedicated Preview app arrives on iPad, allowing users to view and edit PDFs with powerful tools such as Apple Pencil Markup and AutoFill. Additionally, iPadOS 26 introduces new pro-level capabilities like Background Tasks, audio input selection, and Local Capture, unlocking fresh possibilities for creators working with audio and video.
New Design
The stunning new design delivers a more expressive and delightful experience for iPad users while preserving the familiar feel of iPadOS. Crafted with Liquid Glass—a translucent material that reflects and refracts its surroundings—it dynamically responds to user input, transforming in real time to highlight the content that matters most. This vibrant effect enhances key areas like the Lock Screen and Control Center and offers fresh ways to personalize the Home Screen with updated app icons that come alive in both light and dark modes, featuring colorful new tints and a sleek, clear aesthetic. Refined controls and navigation improvements extend across apps such as Mail, Safari, Apple TV, Apple Music, and more.
New Windows System
iPadOS 26 brings powerful new features that enhance how users work with, manage, and navigate app windows while preserving the immediacy and simplicity iPad users love. The redesigned windowing system allows users to smoothly resize windows, position them precisely, and open multiple windows simultaneously for greater multitasking flexibility.Familiar window controls allow users to easily close, minimize, resize, or tile their windows. Tailored specifically for the iPad’s unique capabilities, window tiling enables users to arrange their windows with a simple flick. When reopening an app, it automatically returns to the exact size and position it was last used in. With Exposé, users can quickly see all their open windows spread out, making it effortless to switch to the one they need. This new windowing system works seamlessly with Stage Manager for grouping windows into distinct sets and supports external displays, providing even more space to multitask across apps.With a new menu bar, users can access the commands available in an app with a simple swipe down from the top of the display, or by moving their cursor to the top. Users can quickly find a specific feature or related tips in an app by using search in the menu bar. Additionally, developers can now customize the menu bar in their own apps.
Apple Intelligence
Apple Intelligence, the system designed to provide helpful insights while respecting user privacy, is more integrated and capable in iPadOS 26. Live Translation is now available in Phone, FaceTime, and Messages, allowing users to communicate across languages more easily. Messages, including group chats, are automatically translated into the user’s preferred language. On FaceTime, translated live captions appear alongside the speaker’s voice, and during phone calls, translations are spoken aloud in real time.
iPadOS 26 also introduces new creative tools like Genmoji, where users can start from existing emojis and customize features such as hair length, accessories, and expressions. Image Playground offers more control over personal attributes and expressions and includes new styles powered by ChatGPT, such as an oil painting style for Contact Posters. Users can also describe exactly what they want using “Any Style,” and Image Playground can generate images based on descriptions or photos by connecting to ChatGPT.
The Shortcuts app now includes intelligent actions that allow for more advanced workflows, such as summarizing text with Writing Tools and creating images with Image Playground. Users can also access Apple Intelligence models to provide responses that feed into their shortcuts. For example, a student might create a shortcut that compares a lecture’s audio transcription with their notes to identify any missing points.
File Management
iPadOS 26 adds new tools for managing, accessing, and editing files. The Files app now features an improved List view with resizable columns and collapsible folders to display more document details. Users can customize folders with colors, icons, and emoji, which sync across devices for easier identification. Folders can also be dragged directly into the Dock for quick access. Additionally, users can set default apps to open specific file types.
Preview App
Preview is now available on iPad as a dedicated app for viewing, editing, and marking up PDFs and images using Apple Pencil or touch. Users can open their PDFs and images directly from the Files app in Preview, create blank pages to sketch or write on with Apple Pencil, and use AutoFill to quickly complete PDF forms.
App Management
With the power of Apple silicon, iPadOS 26 enables apps to run intensive Background Tasks more efficiently. When users start a lengthy process, Live Activities provide real-time updates and control over what’s running. Developers also have access to an updated Background Tasks API to support these long-running tasks in their apps.