Apple outs developer beta 9 of iOS 26, macOS Tahoe 26

The developer betas continue as the OS updates prepare to launch, with new ninth builds of iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe, watchOS 26, tvOS 26, and visionOS 26 now available.

The ninth round appears after the eighth, which Apple seeded on August 25. The seventh landed on August 18, while the sixth landed on August 11.

Apple is finalizing the updates for its 26-generation operating systems, which includes iOS 26, iPadOS 26, watchOS 26, macOS 26 Tahoe, visionOS 26, and tvOS 26. With Apple’s September event on the horizon, the official releases of each operating system is anticipated to arrive within weeks.

• iOS 26 beta 9 is build 23A5336a, replacing 23A5330a
• iPadOS 26 beta 9 is build 23A5336a, replacing 23A5330a
• watchOS 26 beta 9 is build 23R5350b, replacing 23R5350a
• macOS Tahoe 26 beta 9 is build 25A5351b, replacing 25A5349a
• visionOS 26 beta 9 is build 23M5335b, replacing 23M5332a
• tvOS 26 beta 9 is build 23J5351a, replacing 23J5348a

The main change for the 26 generation is the cross-platform Liquid Glass interface design. Based on glass, it uses transparency for a refractive effect throughout the operating systems and Apple’s apps.

Some of the other major updates in iOS 26 include the battery management system, an updated camera app, changes to the ChatGPT integration, and feature updates for AirPods.

The eighth iOS 26 developer beta was relatively unchanged compared to earlier builds, which included a steady flow of refinements.

The seventh iOS 26 developer beta included a reintroduction of blood oxygen measuring for the Apple Watch, a new Adaptive Power Notifications option, and a Liquid Glass tweak to make the background of Control Center darker for readability.

Apple has also been testing other operating system updates, including a second track for the current-gen versions.

AppleInsider and Apple strongly warn against users installing test operating systems or beta software onto primary or “mission-critical” hardware. Due to the increased risk of data loss and other issues, beta participants should use secondary or non-essential hardware and ensure they have sufficient backups of their critical data at all times.

Members of the public wanting to try out the new features before the full release should instead try the public betas.

Find any changes in the new builds? Reach out to us on Twitter at @AppleInsider or @Andrew_OSU, or send Andrew an email at [email protected].