Apple iOS 26’s Liquid Glass Is Coming, But Chrome Isn’t Jumping In Yet

At WWDC, Apple announced iOS 26 for iPhones, showcasing a bold new interface called Liquid Glass—a sleek, translucent design inspired by visionOS. However, Google is being cautious: a recent code commit spotted by us indicates that Chrome will disable Liquid Glass support by default, waiting until the features are more stable and “reasonably supported.”

This futuristic UI represents Apple’s biggest design shift since iOS 7, featuring glowing buttons, blurred menus, and a floating effect that extends throughout the operating system. Early reactions from developers have been mixed, with some praising its innovation while others question its practicality.

Here’s the twist: Google Chrome won’t be adopting the new look immediately. Deep in Chrome’s code, engineers have embedded their reasoning:

iOS: Add build flag for Liquid Glass UI compatibility

This CL introduces `ios_enable_liquid_glass`, a new GN build argument
to control whether Chrome opts out of the "Liquid Glass" UI on iOS
by setting `UIDesignRequiresCompatibility=true` in the Info.plist.

The flag defaults to `false`, which maintains the current behavior
of opting out (i.e., `UIDesignRequiresCompatibility` remains `true`).
This opt-out is intended as a measure until Liquid Glass features
are "reasonably supported". Setting the flag to `true` allows opting
*in* to Liquid Glass.

To implement this, the `UIDesignRequiresCompatibility` key has been
moved from the main `ios/chrome/app/resources/Info.plist` to a new
`ios/chrome/app/resources/DisableLiquidGlassCompatibility+Info.plist`
file. This new file is conditionally included in the build based on
the `ios_enable_liquid_glass` flag.

By setting this flag to false, Google is telling Chrome to maintain its current interface for now. The decision comes from practical concerns—avoiding potential bugs, glitches, or readability issues that might come with early adoption of Apple’s dramatic visual overhaul.

# Disable iOS 26 liquid glass until reasonably supported.
ios_enable_liquid_glass = false

Google’s implementation includes a clever toggle system. The ios_enable_liquid_glass flag allows developers to turn on Liquid Glass support when ready, ensuring a smooth transition.

Industry observers expect Google to launch the feature within 3–6 months of iOS 26’s public release.

Liquid Glass is still in its early days. Google is playing the classic wait-and-see game with Apple’s Liquid Glass UI. Once Apple improves the technology and more people start using it, Google can just switch the flag to true, easily fitting Chrome into Apple’s new look when the time is right.