The iOS 26.3 RC debuted yesterday, which means the first iOS 26.4 beta will be dropping soon too. Here is every rumored new feature that iOS 26.4 is expected to bring.
Siri’s big AI revamp
Almost a year after Apple officially delayed its “more personalized” version of Siri, iOS 26.4 is expected to finally unveil what Apple has been working on for so long.
The new AI revamp for Siri will be powered by the new partnership with Google, using Gemini technology as the foundation for how Siri now works.
We’re expecting some major changes to Siri’s underlying infrastructure, but also at least three big user-facing new features:
- personal context knowledge
- on-screen awareness
- hundreds of new in-app and cross-app actions
Rumors indicate even more Siri changes will arrive in iOS 27, such as a chatbot-style conversational interface and possibly a major visual overhaul.
But for now, iOS 26.4 should at least deliver the upgrades Apple originally promised for iOS 18.
Brand new emoji
Every year, a group called the Unicode Consortium votes on new emoji that will be added to the official cross-platform emoji standard. Last summer, nine new emoji were confirmed for the iOS 26 cycle.
Here’s the full list
- Apple Core
- Ballet Dancers
- Distorted Face
- Fight Cloud
- Hairy Creature
- Landslide
- Orca
- Trombone
- Treasure Chest
Apple traditionally adds new emoji in its x.4 releases each year, so iOS 26.4 is highly likely to bring these nine additions.
Folders in Freeform, and possibly new Creator Studio features
Macworld reported last year on a variety of new features expected in iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and beyond. Their report was based on a leaked build of iOS 26.
Among the features flagged for iOS 26.4 was folders coming to Freeform.
Freeform recently added tables in iOS 26.2, and folders are another important tool currently missing from the app.
It’s also possible that iOS 26.4 will bring some AI enhancements or other changes to Freeform for Apple Creator Studio users. When Creator Studio launched last week, Apple said that Freeform would be updated later this year with “premium content and features.”
Add credit cards to AutoFill in third-party apps
Apple Wallet recently gained a great new feature for saving AutoFill credit cards, and it sounds like it could get even better with iOS 26.4.
Per Filipe Espósito at Macworld:
Apple is testing a system that detects when a card is added inside a third-party app and then offers to save it to iCloud Keychain. The feature would work in pretty much the same way as Autofill in Safari.
Expanding AutoFill to more places is a great move, as it’s one of the best time-saving features iOS offers.
‘Sports Tier’ in TV app and other background improvements
Macworld also reported that there’s a “Sports Tier” feature flag in iOS 26.4 related to the Apple TV app. It’s unknown what this might mean, or whether it will be visible to users or entirely a background change.
One guess is that it could be related to the growing array of sports content in the TV app since F1 races and MLS matches will be free additions for Apple TV subscribers.
Another potential background change is a “new validation system that will check the integrity of the device before logging into Apple ID and iCloud.” Macworld says this could potentially lock users out of Apple’s online services if a device seems to have received “unauthorized modifications, such as jailbreaking.”
iOS 26.4 new features: wrap-up
The list above is only what’s been rumored so far for iOS 26.4. As with most iPhone software updates, there are usually plenty more new features and changes than what rumors say is coming.
We’re expecting the first iOS 26.4 beta to arrive for developers later this month, and will keep you posted on any changes we discover.
What new changes in iOS 26.4 are you hoping to see? Let us know in the comments.
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