Liquid Glass: Redefining Design Systems for Today’s Products

Apple’s WWDC 2025 keynote introduced Liquid Glass, a new design system spanning all its platforms. It promises consistency and adaptability, with translucent elements that shift dynamically under user interaction.

I've been playing with transparency and blur for a little while and the announcement had me exploring why Liquid Glass matters for product teams and offers practical steps to apply similar principles.

Why unified design systems matter

Consumers now use multiple devices daily. Inconsistent visuals create friction: a menu on a tablet that looks nothing like its desktop counterpart can confuse users. Liquid Glass tackles this by standardising materials, interactions and motion. When every component is built on the same rules, designers and engineers spend less time reconciling differences and more time innovating.

Key features of Liquid Glass

• Translucence: Elements reflect underlying content, providing context and depth without distraction.
• Dynamic animations: Animations respond to touch and cursor movement, guiding attention and reinforcing hierarchy.
• Cross-platform tokens: Shared colour, spacing and typography tokens ensure that a button on iPhone matches one on Mac.
• Adaptive components: Controls adjust their appearance based on environment, for example dark mode or varying device sizes.

While a refresh was due for iOS and others, and I am glad there is full cohesion across all platforms - I can't help feel there was some borrowed design from Microsoft's Acrylic design.

Lessons for your team

1. Audit your existing system List all UI components and note inconsistencies. Even minor differences in padding or font weight can erode user trust.
2. Define core tokens Create a shared repository for colours, spacing and typography. Use a platform-agnostic format, such as JSON or CSS custom properties.
3. Prototype dynamic effects Build quick prototypes illustrating translucence or motion. Test these with users to confirm they enhance rather than distract.
4. Automate enforcement Integrate linters or design-token checks into your CI pipeline. This prevents drift and ensures every commit aligns with your system.
5. Document clearly Write concise guidelines explaining when and how to use each token and component. Include code samples for designers and developers.

Potential challenges

Adopting a new system demands initial investment. Teams must unlearn legacy patterns and rebuild core libraries. Prioritise the highest-impact areas—such as navigation bars and form controls—before expanding across the entire product.

The future of design systems

Liquid Glass also hints at deeper AI integration. Apple’s updates to its intelligence suite suggest that future systems may adapt tokens in real time, adjusting contrast or scale based on user behaviour. Product teams should start exploring how machine-learning can personalise UI and automate accessibility enhancements.

Liquid Glass is more than a fresh coat of paint. It demonstrates how a cohesive, adaptive design system drives efficiency, consistency and future-proofing. By auditing your current components, defining robust tokens and automating enforcement, you can build a system that feels both unified and alive—ready to evolve with tomorrow’s innovations.