At WWDC 2025, Apple largely focused on a design overhaul across devices. Liquid Glass — which is now its new design interface — will now power all Apple devices including the iPhones, iPads, Macs and even the Apple Watches. Meanwhile Apple Intelligence took a new direction and will now be more deeply integrated across the ecosystem, including iOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe, iPadOS 26, and watchOS 26.
Along with this, Apple also introduced some new Apple Intelligence features that build on last year’s updates like Writing Tools, smart summaries for Messages and Mail, and its recent ChatGPT integration.
I got a close look at some of these features during different sessions and briefings held at the Apple Park during the ongoing developer conference. Some of these are definitely interesting and useful updates, but some of them also require some work. So, here is a bit of round-up of new Apple Intelligence features coming to your devices, along with some feedback for Apple engineers. Please, take note!
This was one of the most obvious updates and had to arrive on Apple devices at some point. So, Apple Intelligence can translate your conversations real-time across text and voice in different lanuagues. This works on Messages, FaceTime, and Phone for iOS 26, WatchOS 26, iPad OS 26, and macOS Tahoe 26. The feature works flawlessly in all the demos I saw at the Apple Park.
It also works backwards on Messages, meaning if you enable live translation within a chat, it will translate the older messages as well. Also, there is an option to enable for a specific contact. So, everytime you get a message from that person, it will automatically be translated — saving that extra step.
However, that only works on Messages and not for calls. There you will have to manually turn it on after picking up the call. Apple says it wants the caller to know that the conversation is being translated. Honestly, that can happen through an automated voice announcement as soon as the call is picked.
Secondly, live translations don’t support group calls or multiple languages as of now. So, you can only use them on 1:1 calls and for converting one language only.
With Genmoji, you can now blend multiple emojis and even customise them using Image Playground — be it tweaking facial expressions or changing hairstyles. Image Playground also includes built-in ChatGPT integration, allowing you to generate images using OpenAI’s model directly within the tool.
Also read: At WWDC 2025, Apple puts design first again with iOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe and iPadOS 26
Within group chats, you can now create polls and Apple Intelligence will compile the results. You can add emojis to the polls. Also, people will have the right to vote for multiple options. And, if someone decides not to vote, that will also be visible to the group.
As of now, the polls remain open after creation. I think it will be a good idea to add a time-limit to these polls. It will help people understand the urgency or enable them to take decisions in a given time frame.
Apple had introduced the Visual Intelligence on iPhones last year. And, with iOS 26, it has now added visual search feature by combining Visual Intelligence with Apple Intelligence. How does it work? By taking a screenshot of any app you’re looking at, you can use a new search function on the bottom of your screen. It can recognise events from the screenshot and them to your calendar, do a Google search and is also integrated with ChatGPT.
While I was using it, I was wondering how cool would that be on an iPad. It made sense to restrict Visual Intelligence to iPhones as long as the experinece was limited to cameras. But, now with Visual Intelligence on screen, Apple should look to expand the goodness to a larger form factor.
Spotlight is no longer just a tool for searching apps or documents. With Apple Intelligence, it’s evolving into a smart assistant capable of automating tasks. It can now handle actions like drafting and sending emails, and offers intelligent suggestions by analysing the context of the app or document you’re working in, helping you find relevant information or take the next step more efficiently.
Probably, the most fun new Apple Intelligence feature, Workout Buddy on Apple Watch is an AI-powered fitness coach which brings a new level of personalisation. This AI-generated voice uses your workout data and health history to guide you in real time — offering encouragement, suggesting when to ease up or push harder, and even celebrating your progress when you wrap up a session. It’s like having a smart, always-on personal trainer right on your wrist.
Interestingly, it doesn’t use the Siri voice but has a personality of its own which is currently available in two languages and one more is expected later this year. In fact, Live Translation also uses a different voice than Siri or Workout Buddy. So, for the first time you have different voices and personalities on the Apple devices. It will be interesting to see how Apple maintains the experience across them.