Apple is about to hold what might be its biggest product launch ever.
The company will reveal a whole new design for its most popular ever product, the iPhone, that will allow it to fold in half. That device, rumoured to be named the iPhone Ultra or Duo, has been years in the making and is rumoured to cost over $2,000.
Alongside its first folding phone, Apple will also launch an iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, updates to the AirPods – and its new chief executive. It will be the first keynote hosted by new boss John Ternus since he took over as the head of the company at the start of September.
But it is the new device that is expected to take up much of Apple’s time, offering a glimpse at the future of the product that will decide the company’s future.
The event kicks off at 10am local pacific time, or 6pm in the UK. It will be live-streamed online but you can follow all the latest below.
Hello and welcome…
… to The Independent’s live coverage of Apple’s 2026 September event, widely rumoured to be bringing its first ever foldable phone, updated Pro models as well as AirPods and Apple Watches – and a whole new CEO.
Andrew Griffin9 September 2026 05:50
What’s the new, folding iPhone called?
Recent rumours have consistently pointed to ‘iPhone Ultra’ as the name of the new foldable device. But a late entry from reliable Apple reporter Mark Gurman suggests it could be called “iPhone Duo”.
The same report also suggests that it will cost $2,000, as rumoured – but that it could have been much more. The price of the memory required for the device has gone up dramatically, but Apple has opted to eat those costs itself to ensure the device’s price does not go up too high, he reported.
Andrew Griffin9 September 2026 05:56
Everything Apple will – and won’t – reveal at its launch event
The foldable iPhone will get much of the focus, alongside the new Pro models and updated Apple Watches. But there will be some notable omissions from this September event.
You can read about all of the products coming – and not – here.
Andrew Griffin9 September 2026 05:58
Home products on their way?
Some rumours have suggested that Apple has been working on a load of different home devices – special screens that can stay in one place and work something like a combination of an iPad and a HomePod, for instance, or even more unusual ones such as a home camera system. We might not see them at this September event, but they are expected to be coming soon.
It would make sense with Apple’s keenness to stress its new chief executive John Ternus as being focused heavily on product. What better way would there to be show that than to launch a whole host of new products – even if they’re a little weird?
Andrew Griffin9 September 2026 05:59
John Ternus’s debut
New Apple chief executive John Ternus will be leading the keynote for the first ever time, after taking over at the start of September. He’s appeared in plenty of them before, and the handover has been long-planned and well-managed, but it still marks a decisive moment in his taking control of the company from Tim Cook.
It might be the first time we really get to see who he is. And it might bring with it other changes in the event itself – some rumours had suggested that Apple could return to a live format for the event, though those have got much quieter recently.
Andrew Griffin9 September 2026 06:01