Just ahead of this year’s WWDC 2026, Apple has announced a major accessibility update powered by Apple Intelligence. The company is expanding several of its existing accessibility tools with AI-driven capabilities designed to make iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Vision Pro easier to use for people with different visual, physical, hearing, and mobility needs.
One of the biggest additions is an upgraded version of VoiceOver. Apple says the screen reader can now offer much deeper image understanding through a new feature called Image Explorer. Instead of only identifying basic objects, the tool can describe photos, scanned documents, bills, charts, and other visual content in greater detail. Users can also ask follow-up questions about what appears in front of the camera and receive spoken responses in real time using the Action button on supported iPhones.
Magnifier is also getting smarter with Apple Intelligence integration. The app can now provide spoken descriptions of surroundings through a high-contrast interface while also supporting voice commands. Users can ask it to zoom in, activate the flashlight, or adjust viewing settings without manually tapping controls.
Apple is also improving Voice Control with more conversational language understanding. Rather than remembering exact interface labels or commands, users with physical disabilities can interact with apps more naturally by describing what they want to do in plain language.
Another notable upgrade comes to Accessibility Reader. According to Apple, the feature now handles more complicated layouts better, including scientific papers, multi-column formats, tables, and dense documents that were previously difficult to navigate.
The company has also introduced AI-generated subtitles for videos that do not already include captions. Using on-device speech recognition, Apple devices can automatically transcribe spoken dialogue from videos, livestreams, and shared clips. The generated captions can also be customised through playback settings.
For Apple Vision Pro users, Apple is introducing a new wheelchair control system powered by eye tracking. The feature allows compatible wheelchairs to be controlled using Vision Pro’s eye-tracking technology. Initially, support will be available for Tolt and LUCI wheelchair systems in the US through Bluetooth or wired accessory connections.
Several smaller accessibility updates are also arriving across Apple’s ecosystem. Vision Pro is receiving improved Dwell Control eye-selection tools and new face gesture support. tvOS is getting larger text options, while iPhone, iPad, and Mac are adding expanded Name Recognition language support, improved hearing aid connectivity, and support for the Sony Access Controller.
Alongside the software announcements, Apple also confirmed that the Hikawa Grip & Stand accessory for iPhone is now available globally through the Apple Store Online in three new colour options. The accessory was designed by Bailey Hikawa in collaboration with people who experience grip strength and mobility challenges.