Earlier this week, Omni Group CEO Ken Case shared an update to the 2026 roadmap. This follows the Omni Roadmap 2026 he published in February, which I covered from an OmniFocus perspective in Omni Roadmap 2026: OmniFocus 4 Highlights.
This update revisits the February roadmap in light of Apple’s announcements at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). After two years of dramatic changes, Ken describes this one as a return to “calmer waters,” focused more on refinements than on major new changes.
Here are some highlights that are of particular interest to OmniFocus users.
Leveraging the Power of SwiftUI
A recurring theme in Ken’s update is SwiftUI. In plain terms, SwiftUI is Apple’s modern toolkit for building the parts of an app you see and interact with. It allows developers to create apps more efficiently across the Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Vision Pro, and Apple Watch.
Omni built OmniFocus 4 using SwiftUI. Apple continues to invest in and develop this technology, and OmniFocus, along with Omni’s other apps, benefits from that ongoing work.
Apple Intelligence in OmniFocus
With this year’s upcoming OS 27 releases, Apple Intelligence will take a significant step forward. Two developments stand out for OmniFocus users.
Omni’s work in recent years has enhanced OmniFocus’s ability to work with Shortcuts and Spotlight. This year, that same groundwork positions Siri to begin working with OmniFocus using natural language and to recognize what you’re looking at on screen.
Omni can also tap into Apple’s built-in AI models. Today, this runs privately on your own device, in keeping with Omni’s offline, opt-in approach. Omni already makes these models available through OmniFocus plug-ins and is exploring ways to use them more directly.
Connecting OmniFocus to AI Assistants
AI assistants like Claude are most useful when they have context and are connected to the apps and services you use. An emerging standard called Model Context Protocol (MCP) makes those connections possible. In simple terms, it gives an AI assistant a standard way to connect to your apps and services, so it can retrieve information and carry out actions on your behalf.
Omni has followed these developments closely and held off on any development until the team had more information on Apple’s plans. Now that the picture is clearer, Omni is giving serious thought to supporting MCP in OmniFocus. In practice, MCP support would let you use Claude or similar assistants to interface with OmniFocus.
People who are interested in testing can contact Omni at test-mcp@omnigroup.com.
Progress on Kanban
Kanban is a popular method for visually organizing work, often using cards arranged on a board.
In his update, Ken shares that he first thought of Kanban as another way to view existing perspectives, but after rereading Personal Kanban: Mapping Work | Navigating Life, he concluded that OmniFocus needs flexibility its current perspectives don’t offer. He notes that most of the initial design work is now done.
I’ll cover Kanban in depth here on Learn OmniFocus once this feature is available.
Faster Syncing Outside the United States
Omni is working to speed up syncing for OmniFocus users outside the United States, testing new servers to provide faster, more reliable syncing for the many people who sync from outside the US. As always, your OmniFocus data stays encrypted with keys known only to your devices.
Preparing OmniFocus for OS 27
Omni has a reputation for leveraging new OS features and interface elements.
Each summer, their first priority is to ensure OmniFocus is ready for Apple’s operating system updates by the time they are released. This year, that means preparing OmniFocus and their other apps for macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and visionOS 27.
A Bright Future for OmniFocus
The work Omni has done over the past few years is enabling some exciting developments, including tapping into Apple Intelligence. I appreciate Omni’s thoughtful approach to AI and the emphasis they place on privacy.
As always, I’ll cover these features in depth as they arrive in the content library, including our in-depth courses. If you have questions or want to explore how any of this fits your workflow, join us at an upcoming Office Hours session.
Many thanks to the talented team at Omni for the time and energy they continue to put into their apps.