Apple concluded its WWDC 2026 event, and I finally got to install and play with iPadOS 27 developer beta. After spending some time with the first developer beta, I can tell you there’s a lot to be excited about. The headline feature is the all-new Siri AI powered by Apple Intelligence, but that’s just the beginning. From smarter photo editing to a Shortcuts app you can finally talk to, here’s everything you need to know.
Siri AI gets its own app
The biggest change this year is a smarter, more conversational Siri AI, and it finally gets its own dedicated app. You can ask questions, brainstorm ideas for work or creative projects, and have natural back-and-forth conversations by typing or talking. This is a big leap from the Siri we have grown used to over the years.
What will make it useful is that Siri now understands your personal context. You can ask it to pull up a photo from years ago, find an email buried deep in your inbox, or locate a note you saved weeks back. It’s deeply integrated in Apple’s native apps and can also take action in apps like Messages, Music, Reminders, and more based on what you are doing in the moment.
The new Siri app also brings together all your conversations across your Apple products. That means you can ask a question on your iPhone and pick up exactly where you left off on your iPad. You can pin conversations for easy access or start a new one whenever you want. Apple will also let you customize how Siri sounds by adjusting the pitch, speed, tone, and accent.
There’s a catch, though. Even after applying for the new Siri as soon as the beta dropped, I still did not have access to the new Siri AI, and I am still on the waitlist. I just hope Apple doesn’t repeat its past mistake and actually delivers on what it promised in the keynote.
Photos gets clever new editing tools
What we can test are the new photo editing tools. Apple Intelligence is now baked into the Photos app. You get new Extend and Reframe tools sitting alongside an improved Clean Up that can now remove even larger objects.
In the beta, the Extend tool worked well and added extra context around the image with nothing looking out of place. You can tap to compare the original image with the extended one, and overall, it does a decent job for an early build.
The Reframe tool is meant to bring spatial photos from Vision OS to life, letting you turn an image to reveal a bit more of the background. Sadly, it didn’t work well enough in my testing. But remember, this is developer beta one, so a few hiccups are expected.
What impressed me was the new Clean Up tool. It’s far better than the previous versions and can remove larger objects and clean up more complex images. I think users will use this feature more than the other two.
Shortcuts finally speaks your language
This is one of my favorite updates of the bunch. If you have always been intimidated by the Shortcuts app, iPadOS 27 changes everything. You can now describe what you want in plain language, and Shortcuts will build the automation for you.
I am still testing this and will write about this feature in length in the future. For now, I find that it can easily create basic shortcuts, but complex shortcuts like the ones I shared in my favorite shortcuts list are beyond its power.
Hopefully, Apple will build upon this foundation and make it more powerful and useful for all users. Shortcuts is one of the most underrated tools, and the easier it becomes to use, the more people will adopt and benefit from it.
Safari keeps your tabs tidy
Safari is getting a welcome update, too. It will now automatically group and organize your tabs by topic or type, so related pages are easier to find. In the beta, I had a few separate tabs open and could group them with a simple tap from a drop-down menu. If I want, I can also save these as tab groups.
There’s also a new Notify Me feature that watches pages for changes, like a price drop or a restock, then alerts you when it’s time to act. I didn’t have the opportunity to test out this feature, but I am hopeful this will also work as advertised.
Separate volume controls at last
For years, you have had one master slider controlling your ringtones, alarms, and alerts all at once. With iPadOS 27, you can finally set individual controls for each category of sound. So you can keep your alarms and timers loud while dialing down your ringtone. It’s a small addition, but a fantastic one that gives you proper control over what comes out of your iPad.
A more polished, playful look
Liquid Glass gets some love this year. There’s a new slider that lets you adjust the opacity, from ultra-clear to fully tinted, so you can get readability just right. Apple has also improved contrast and refraction for better legibility, and app icons look sharper and more detailed.
Visual Intelligence
iPadOS 27 brings Visual Intelligence to the iPad, letting you learn more and take action on virtually anything onscreen. Just tap an item with your finger or circle it with your Apple Pencil to find out more or run an image search. I will have to test this feature in detail to determine its usefulness, so stay tuned for those articles.
Child safety, performance, and everything else
Apple is also adding new child safety features. Parents can pick exactly which apps their kids can use during setup, approve new websites via the new Ask to Browse feature, and set Time Allowances across categories like Entertainment, Games, and Social Media.
Under the hood, Apple promises browsing and transferring files to an external drive up to 5x faster, along with quicker app launches and AirDrop transfers. Your iPad will also switch between Wi-Fi and cellular more seamlessly, so you stay connected on the move.
This is just the first beta, and it takes time for the OS to settle after the first update, so I won’t comment on the performance aspect right now. All I will say is that the beta is far more stable than previous first developer betas.
When can you get it?
iPadOS 27 arrives this fall and is compatible with iPad Pro, iPad Air, iPad, and iPad mini models. Interestingly, the beta felt more stable on my iPad than on my iPhone, which was a pleasant surprise. Still, install developer betas at your own risk, since a lot can go wrong with a major OS update this early. If you would rather play it safe, hold off for the public version.
