Apple Seeds Second Beta of tvOS 16 to Developers - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Seeds Second Beta of tvOS 16 to Developers

by

Apple today seeded the second beta of an upcoming tvOS 16 update to developers for testing purposes, with the beta coming two weeks after Apple introduced tvOS 16 at the Worldwide Developers Conference.

apple tv 4k design triad
Developers can download the new tvOS 16 beta by downloading a profile onto the Apple TV using Xcode.

tvOS 16 enables cross-device connectivity, a feature that allows developers to integrate ‌Apple TV‌ apps with iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch apps to unlock new experiences on the TV. Apple has also improved how multiple user profiles work in tvOS 16 by adding a shared keychain, so users won't need to sign in and choose their profile when launching an ‌Apple TV‌ app.

Game controller support has been expanded to the Nintendo Joy-Cons and Pro Controller, and HDR10+ support is available in the tvOS 16 ‌Apple TV‌ app. With tvOS 16, the ‌Apple TV‌ will support Matter, an upcoming standard that will improve interoperability between smart home accessories from different companies.

tvOS 16 is limited to developers right now, but Apple will provide a public beta of the software to public beta testers in July.

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: Apple TV and Home Theater

Popular Stories

Apple Friday Night Baseball 2026

Apple TV and MLB Release August Schedule for 'Friday Night Baseball'

Thursday July 9, 2026 9:13 am PDT by
Apple and MLB today released the August schedule for Apple TV's weekly Friday Night Baseball doubleheader. Friday Night Baseball games are included with an Apple TV streaming subscription at no additional...
Read Full Article • 12 comments
New Apple TV Logo

Apple TV Taking Over Comic-Con's Hall H for the First Time With Widow's Bay, Silo and More

Thursday July 9, 2026 4:05 pm PDT by
Apple TV is taking over Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con for the first time, according to Deadline. Apple is holding a two-hour panel on July 25 featuring stars from Widow's Bay, Matchbox The Movie, Mayday, Dark Matter, and Silo. Hall H is known for some of the biggest Comic-Con panels and events, and Saturday draws the largest crowds. Apple's event will come before a major Marvel Studios...
Read Full Article • 14 comments
General visionOS watchOS and tvOS Betas Feature Redux

Apple Releases Fifth watchOS 26.6, tvOS 26.6 and visionOS 26.6 Betas

Monday July 13, 2026 10:27 am PDT by
Apple today provided developers with the fifth betas of upcoming watchOS 26.6, tvOS 26.6, and visionOS 26.6 betas for testing purposes. The software comes a week after Apple seeded the fourth betas. The software updates are available through the Settings app on each device, and because these are developer betas, a free developer account is required. There's no word on what's in the...
Read Full Article • 5 comments

Top Rated Comments

actripxl Avatar
actripxl
54 months ago
I love my 4K Apple TV, much smoother than my TV running apps. I didn’t want to spend the money at first but there is no Directv Steam app on the google tv platform.

Bought the Apple TV on sale and it runs everything so smoothly, with no lag when switching between apps.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
S
_Spinn_
54 months ago

tvOS 16 enables cross-device connectivity, a feature that allows developers to integrate Apple TV apps with iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch apps to unlock new experiences on the TV.
Hopefully devs make use of this feature. Seems like it could be very neat.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
Realityck
54 months ago

If only Macrumors would post the build number with each beta. It would make life so much easier.

9to5mac have do so.

Build - 20J5319h
I posted them in the iOS/iPadOS beta 2 ('https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apple-seeds-second-betas-of-ios-16-and-ipados-16-to-developers.2348938/post-31205642') and Mac OS beta 2 ('https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apple-seeds-second-beta-of-macos-13-ventura-to-developers.2348939/post-31205614') threads.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BWhaler Avatar
BWhaler
54 months ago
Please, for the love of all good things in Cupertino, did they finally fix the ‘won’t load’ library bug in the AppleTV app that apparently only exists on Apple’s own hardware.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
C
CarAnalogy
54 months ago
With all these huge discounts on the current Apple TV, maybe there's a refresh coming soon. I would buy new remotes just for Find My support.

Though come to think of it, neither AirPods Pro nor the base model of Apple Watch have sold for anywhere near full retail price since shortly after release. Maybe they just know those products are a little overpriced.

Apple could be finally making a serious push into TV and lower prices are a good start.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
H
hagar
54 months ago

tvOS feels so hobby at this point.
Hopefully they release a new home cinema and/or smart home device this fall
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments