Apple’s latest update to its spatial operating system, visionOS 26, brings a mix of visual refinements and practical enhancements that expand the Vision Pro’s capabilities in both consumer and enterprise settings. At the core of this release is a focus on making spatial computing feel more integrated with users’ environments—through anchored widgets, enriched photos, improved collaboration tools, and expanded content formats. Alongside these changes, Apple continues to open the platform to third-party developers with broader API access and compatibility with external accessories.
Widgets Move into Space
Widgets in visionOS 26 are no longer locked to the virtual grid—they now anchor in physical space. This allows users to place clocks, weather info, music controls, or photo previews into their room and have them persist across sessions. The new Widgets app helps discover available options, including those shared from iOS or iPadOS apps via WidgetKit. Each widget is customizable in frame, color, and spatial depth.
This update moves widgets from passive glanceable elements into active, ambient parts of a user’s environment—whether for utility or personalization. Spatial photos and panoramic scenes can also be used as live widget elements, contributing to a more immersive and consistent interface.
More Realistic, Customizable Personas
Vision Pro’s Personas—digital avatars used in FaceTime and collaborative settings—have been reworked with improved volumetric rendering and machine learning. The updates introduce full side profiles, more accurate hair and skin textures, and better lighting adaptation. A revised setup process offers real-time previews and expanded customization, including support for over 1,000 eyewear variants. The result is a digital representation that feels less synthetic and more expressive—though it’s still unmistakably artificial.
Shared Spatial Experiences, Now Local
Until now, Vision Pro users could collaborate remotely in spatial environments. visionOS 26 adds support for co-located shared experiences, enabling multiple Vision Pro users in the same room to view 3D movies, play games, or work together using the same digital environment. Remote participants can still join via FaceTime. Enterprise use cases are already emerging—Dassault Systèmes, for example, is extending this to collaborative 3D model visualization.
Spatial Scenes Bring Depth to Still Images
A key new feature is Spatial Scenes, which uses generative AI and computational depth to turn static spatial photos into layered environments with perceptible parallax. Users can “lean into” a photo and experience it from different angles, a shift that transforms image viewing from passive to participatory.
These enhanced images appear in the Photos, Safari, and Spatial Gallery apps. Developers can access this through a new Spatial Scene API, already being used by companies like Zillow to add spatial depth to real estate images.
Expanded Content and Device Support
With visionOS 26, users can natively play 180°, 360°, and wide field-of-view content from brands like Insta360, GoPro, and Canon—bringing more immersive playback to user-generated and professional footage alike. On the gaming front, the OS now supports PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers, allowing for more sophisticated motion input, finger tracking, and haptics. These peripherals add depth to gaming and simulation apps and further align Vision Pro with existing XR ecosystems.
Enterprise APIs and Device Sharing
For business and educational institutions, Apple is rolling out new APIs focused on privacy, deployment, and collaborative tools. A Protected Content API helps organizations securely display confidential documents or visuals by restricting access, copying, and screen sharing.
The update also enables team device sharing, where a user’s personalized settings—such as vision prescriptions, accessibility features, or hand tracking profiles—can follow them between headsets via a paired iPhone running iOS 26. Support for Logitech Muse, a spatial pointer device, adds new control options, especially for design and collaboration software.
Streamlined Browsing, Communication, and Control
Safari in visionOS 26 introduces spatial browsing, allowing web content to fill a user’s field of view with dynamic depth and embedded 3D elements. Web developers can now integrate 3D models directly into sites, letting users interact with objects within Safari without launching a native app.
New communication features include Look to Scroll, which uses eye tracking to navigate within apps or webpages. Users can set scroll speed and developers can integrate it into third-party apps. Vision Pro also now supports relayed phone calls from iPhone and introduces unlock support for iPhone while immersed in Vision Pro environments.
The redesigned Control Center consolidates environment settings, media controls, and system features like Guest Mode and Travel Mode into one accessible panel. Additionally, Home View folders allow for better app organization, and Apple Intelligence features—including an updated Image Playground—are now available in more languages.
Availability
visionOS 26 is available for developers now, with a public release expected this fall. Most features require Apple Vision Pro hardware and an iPhone running iOS 26. Apple Intelligence capabilities are available in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish, with regional variations supported for countries like Canada, India, and Singapore.
