This year, Apple may unveil iOS 26 instead of the generally anticipated iOS 19. As per a recent article by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is developing a significant rebranding across all its operating systems, which will be designated by year rather than version number. This implies that, in 2025, Apple could release iOS 26, macOS 26, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, and visionOS 26.

This marks a notable shift for Apple, which previously changed the branding of iOS only once — the initial three iterations were termed iPhone OS, with the rebranding to iOS occurring in 2010. The company maintained this naming convention until 2024. Long-time tech enthusiasts will also recall that Microsoft used to define its Windows operating systems by year in 1995, 1998, and 2000, before moving to version numbers (the latest being Windows 11).

For Apple, this alteration is logical. The naming convention for the company’s operating systems is currently inconsistent — the latest version of Apple’s mobile OS is iOS 18, as opposed to macOS 15 and visionOS 2. Should the report hold true, Apple will adopt the subsequent year for its operating system, indicating that the releases in 2025 will be labeled “26,” and so forth.

Gurman mentions that Apple will reveal this change at its Worldwide Developers Conference, commencing on June 9. However, it extends beyond just the name. Apple is set to introduce a revamped appearance across its operating systems — a detail we’ve encountered in earlier reports.