Apple’s software chief Craig Federighi insists the iPad must keep its own identity, and he points to this year’s iPadOS 26 overhaul as proof.
iPadOS 26 Brings a Rebuilt Windowing Engine
In a lengthy MacStories interview published after WWDC, Federighi called iPadOS 26 “the biggest improvement to iPad multitasking since Split View” and revealed that Apple replaced Stage Manager’s underlying code with a new window-prioritization engine.
The change enables fully resizable windows with Mac-style “traffic-light” controls, keyboard-aware menu bars, and advanced tiling that can split the screen into halves and quarters, all still operable with touch. Federighi said the multi-year project finally shipped because Apple Silicon iPads offer the performance headroom to keep dozens of windows active without draining battery life.
macOS Would Dilute the iPad
Asked why Apple doesn’t simply put macOS on its tablets, Federighi invoked a cutlery metaphor, “we don’t want to build sporks… It’s not a good spoon and it’s not a good fork.” Total platform uniformity, he argued, would “optimize for nothing,” so Apple borrows features between devices, but each product still needs its own reason to exist.
He added that Apple held back Mac-like elements until developers and hardware were ready; early iPads lacked the power for full windowing, and bolting on desktop conventions too soon might have stifled the iPad’s unique app ecosystem.
With iPadOS 26, Apple is betting that a purpose-built tablet OS—not a repurposed desktop one—best serves users who now juggle floating windows, precise pointer controls and desktop-class apps on the go. Federighi’s message is clear: the iPad is evolving, but it isn’t turning into a Mac.
