WhatsApp rolls out Liquid Glass interface updates for iOS and iPad

WhatsApp is rolling out significant interface updates across iOS and iPadOS, centered on a new visual language called ‘Liquid Glass’. This design aesthetic utilizes translucent, glass-like effects and dynamic blurring to align the app more closely with Apple’s native design language.

On iPhone, version 26.35.72 introduces these changes directly into the chat screens. The message composition bar now appears to float with a semi-transparent background, and the top navigation bar has become transparent. Additionally, message bubbles have been redesigned to be more rounded, and media elements like photos and videos no longer feature rigid frames, allowing them to blend into the chat background.

The iPad version has undergone a major structural redesign, replacing the bottom tab bar with an advanced side navigation column optimized for large screens. This layout improves access to chats, communities, and settings in both portrait and landscape orientations.

Furthermore, WhatsApp is implementing multimedia previews in the main chat list for both iOS and Android. Users can now see small thumbnails of the most recent photos, videos, or stickers sent in a conversation, providing more context than previous generic text labels.