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WWDC 2026 for developers: what we know so far

S
Slekens
Jun 9, 2026 · 4 min read · (updated Jun 14, 2026)

WWDC 2026’s opening keynote was on June 8, and the same day Apple seeded the first developer betas of iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, watchOS 27, tvOS 27, and visionOS 27. Here’s a recap focused on what changes for those of us building apps.

Note: this is preliminary information, gathered from press and community coverage during the first week of the event. API names and details may change throughout the beta. We’ll keep expanding this summary as more details (and official documentation) land.

The betas are out

Right after the keynote, Apple seeded betas of every OS to developer accounts. iOS 27 supports the same devices as iOS 26 (iPhone 11 or newer). (MacRumors, 9to5Mac)

SwiftUI

The framework got several improvements that touch everyday work. Per Swift with Majid and the Platforms State of the Union:

  • Reordering and swipe actions in any container. The reorderable() / reorderContainer() and swipeActionsContainer() modifiers are no longer exclusive to List: they also work in ScrollView, lazy stacks, and custom layouts.
  • Toolbars that adapt to window size with .topBarPinnedTrailing, visibilityPriority(), and ToolbarOverflowMenu, so you can pin what matters and push secondary items into an overflow menu.
  • AsyncImage with built-in caching via asyncImageURLSession(), where you set your own URLSession and cache size.
  • A new .prominent tab role (trailing-separated tabs, similar to search) and a .crossFade navigation transition.
  • Nested layouts up to 2× faster and new infrastructure for document-based apps: first-class access to the file URL, so you can read only the parts you need and write only what changed, not the whole file.

A small example of the first one — reordering and swipe outside of List:

ScrollView {
    ForEach(items) { item in
        ItemRow(item: item)
    }
}
.reorderable()           // drag to reorder
.swipeActionsContainer() // swipe actions

This behavior used to live almost entirely inside List; now you can apply it to a ScrollView or your own layout without reimplementing it by hand. (Exact names come from Swift with Majid’s write-up and may shift during the beta.)

Swift 6.4

Language and tooling changes, per the State of the Union coverage:

  • An anyAppleOS availability shorthand (e.g. anyAppleOS 27.0) so you don’t repeat every platform.
  • Warning suppression scoped to code regions.
  • await inside defer blocks.
  • A faster type-checker with better diagnostics.

Xcode 27

  • 30% smaller and Apple Silicon-only; settings now sync via iCloud, the toolbar is customizable, and there are new themes (Emerald, Neon Noir, Coral Reef).
  • Device Hub replaces the Simulator: it brings virtual and physical devices together in one place, with live resizing and hardware control from the Mac.
  • Integrated agents: plugins for Figma and GitHub, support for Google Gemini and the Agent-Client Protocol (ACP). Agents can even interact with the simulator —swiping, tapping, typing— to validate the app. (Cult of Mac, MacRumors)

AI inside your apps

Probably the most relevant area for developers this year:

  • App Intents is the path to the new agentic Siri. You define entity schemas, intent schemas, and view annotations so Siri can discover and use features inside your app.
  • Foundation Models framework goes multimodal (it accepts images alongside text), can extract text and QR codes on device, and adds Dynamic Profiles to swap models, tools, and instructions on the fly within a session. Apple said the framework will be open-sourced later in 2026, and that Private Cloud Compute is free for apps with fewer than 2 million users. (Cult of Mac)

For users (briefly)

Although the focus here is development, it’s worth noting: Siri AI was rebuilt with awareness of personal context and on-screen content (not available in the EU at launch); Liquid Glass adds a personalization slider; Shortcuts lets you describe a shortcut in natural language; and Wallet creates passes by scanning codes with Visual Intelligence. (Engadget, TechCrunch)

This is still developing. WWDC week is just getting started and there are sessions yet to be published. We’ll update this recap as more information and Apple’s official documentation become available.

👉 There’s more: continue with part 2 (AI in apps and agents) and part 3 (Xcode Agent Skills and the official SwiftUI APIs).

Sources: MacRumors — betas · 9to5Mac · Engadget · TechCrunch · Swift with Majid · Cult of Mac — Platforms State of the Union · MacRumors — developer tools