At WWDC 2018, Apple’s Craig Federighi famously dismissed speculation about merging iOS and macOS with a curt, "No. Of course not." Seven years later, a seemingly minor bug report for the Safari extension StopTheMadness Pro has unearthed fresh evidence that Apple’s platforms are converging more deeply than publicly acknowledged—through an unexpected lens: video playback.

Developer Jeff Johnson discovered that enabling his extension's "Show native video controls" feature triggered unexpected video darkening on macOS Tahoe. Initial suspicion pointed to Apple's "Liquid Glass" design language, but rigorous testing revealed the truth:

Key Findings:
1. Darkening occurs on **iOS 18**, **iOS 26 (internal build)**, and **macOS 26 (Tahoe)** when Safari's native video controls are visible.
2. Behavior disappears when controls auto-hide or the cursor moves away.
3. iOS 15 shows *no* darkening, confirming the change emerged between iOS 16-18.
4. The issue persists *without* the extension—it's native Safari behavior.

This isn't a bug—it's intentional design synchronization. Federighi once pitched Liquid Glass as a system to "bring greater focus to content." Ironically, darkening active video content reduces focus. Johnson’s comparison screenshots starkly illustrate the difference:

macOS Sequoia (No Darkening)
Normal video playback brightness on Sequoia
macOS Tahoe (Darkened with Controls)
Dimmed video with controls visible on Tahoe

The implications extend beyond aesthetics:

  • Cross-Platform Code Reuse: Identical behavior across iOS and macOS suggests shared rendering logic, accelerating development but reducing platform uniqueness.
  • Design Philosophy Inconsistency: Darkening contradicts Liquid Glass's stated goal, prioritizing UI uniformity over functional clarity.
  • Developer Impact: Extensions and web apps must now account for this behavior on both platforms, complicating cross-browser compatibility.

Apple’s silence on this specific change speaks volumes. As Johnson notes: "Apple made this change sometime between iOS 16 and iOS 18, and now Apple has brought it to macOS 26 Tahoe too." This quiet alignment—whether for efficiency or a unified vision—proves Federighi’s 2018 denial rings increasingly hollow. For developers, it’s a reminder: watch what Apple does, not what it says.

Source: Underpass App Blog