Apple’s iOS 26.4 arrives in public beta with AI music playlists, video podcasts, and more

This week, Apple released the latest version of its mobile operating system, iOS 26.4, which introduces several new features, including AI-powered playlist creation in Apple Music, support for video content in the Podcasts app, end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for RCS messages, and more.

The update is currently in public beta, with a public release expected sometime in March or April.

AI playlist for Apple Music

One of the most noticeable improvements arrives in Apple Music – iOS 26.4 introduces a new AI-powered “Playlist Playground” feature that leverages Apple’s intelligence. This feature allows users to create a custom playlist of 25 songs from a text message, such as “Upbeat Workout Mix” or “Quiet Evening.” Users can then refine the results and even select a matching cover photo.

Additionally, the Apple Music user interface has been updated to display full-screen artwork for albums and playlists.

Parties near you

Additionally, Apple Music is getting a new “Concerts Near You” section that helps users discover live performances by their favorite artists. You can filter this section by date and type, or switch locations if you’re travelling.

Apple Podcasts video episodes

After Spotify’s push to video, Apple’s Podcasts app makes it easier to switch back and forth between audio and video episodes with this release. Creators can publish video podcasts using HTTP Live Streaming (HLS), and listeners can seamlessly switch between audio and video playback within the same episode, going full landscape if they so choose.

At launch, video episodes will be integrated with other Apple Podcasts features, such as personalized recommendations and editorial curation in the new tab and category pages, just as they are with audio podcasts.

HLS also offers an automatic quality adjustment feature, which helps videos play better whether listeners are using Wi-Fi or a cellular network. Additionally, users will be able to download video episodes to watch offline. At launch, HLS is supported by Acast, Amazon’s ART19, Triton’s Omny Studio, SiriusXM, including SiriusXM Media, AdsWizz, and Simplecast.

Creators will be able to dynamically insert video ads, including locations the host is reading, into their podcasts as well. Apple doesn’t charge creators for podcast distribution, but says that starting later this year, participating ad networks will have to pay an impression-based fee for delivering dynamic ads in HLS videos.

RCS encrypted messages

Messaging is also receiving a significant upgrade with Rich Encrypted Communications Services (RCS), which begins testing in iOS 26.4. End-to-end encryption of RCS conversations will one day help ensure that messages between iPhone users and Android users are just as secure as iMessage.

Currently, Apple is only testing this among iPhones in beta. These conversations will be classified as encrypted and cannot be read while being sent between devices. The company indicates that the feature will be released to the public in a later software update for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS, and that the beta version is not available for all devices and carriers.

Stolen device detection is turned on by default

Security improvements are another feature of iOS 26.4. Stolen device protection is now enabled by default, adding an extra layer of biometric authentication for sensitive actions like accessing saved passwords or making certain account changes. By requiring Face ID or Touch ID authentication in more scenarios, Apple reduces the risk of unauthorized access if the device is stolen and the passcode is compromised.

CarPlay adds in-car video playback

Drivers who use Apple CarPlay will also notice changes. CarPlay now supports in-car video playback for select apps — including the Apple TV app — but only when the car is parked to ensure safety. This improvement offers new entertainment options for passengers when they stop or while they wait in the car for a period of time. (Shoutout to parents in the school pickup line!)

Third-party AI services are coming to CarPlay

CarPlay will for the first time provide access to third-party AI services such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Anthropic’s Claude.

Zoom in on the camera app

Meanwhile, the camera app offers Audio Zoom. When recording video, the microphone focuses on the subject while zooming in, reducing background noise and enhancing clarity. This feature makes it easy to capture speeches, presentations or interviews without external audio equipment.

Additionally, the Ambient Music feature can now be accessed through a widget, allowing users to play tracks designed for focus, sleep or relaxation directly from the home screen, instead of just the Control Center as before. The feature, which was first introduced in iOS 18.4, added a variety of ambient sounds to streaming across categories like Sleep, Quiet, Productivity, and Well-being.

Urgent reminder.

There’s also a new Urgent section in the Reminders app that groups high-priority tasks and can trigger more prominent alerts when deadlines are approaching. Setting a reminder as urgent will add an alert so you’re sure not to miss the event.

And more…

Some other smaller features include:

• The new unified Apple Account Center in the App Store, Apple Music, and other Apple apps replaces the previously used Profile feature.
• There’s a new animation in the Messages app when you’re composing a message.
• The updated wallpaper gallery separates different categories in a new way; A similar design has come to the Apple Watch Face Gallery as well. The new version includes sections for weather, astronomy, Emjoi, and more, among other changes.
• Apple Music lets you add songs to multiple playlists at once.
• The Health app adds a new metric: Average Sleep Time, which shows the average time you went to sleep over the past two weeks. The Vitals section has also been updated to include your blood oxygen level on a daily chart.
• Freefrom adds a Content Center for Creator Studio subscribers, providing access to new AI features and high-quality art. Its icon has also been updated.
• Personal Hotspot now includes a Data Usage section that shows how much data has been sent to your device and the Apple and non-Apple devices that are using your data.
• Live Captions adds support for Chinese (Taiwan) under Language Options.
• There’s a new action titled “Set Battery Charge Limit” in Shortcuts.
• The App Store search bar is back at the top of the screen.
• The link to iCloud.com gets a larger, featured section within the iCloud section of the Settings app. Previously, there was only the option to switch to Access iCloud Data on the Web. Now it’s like a big announcement for iCloud.

It’s worth noting that the next-gen Siri experience is absent from this version. While Apple has signaled deeper AI ambitions for its voice assistant, those bigger changes don’t appear in iOS 26.4, which has reportedly been delayed again.