Overview
- Microsoft used the EU Digital Markets Act interoperability request system to ask Apple to enable continuous clipboard sync between iPhones and Windows, a request filed on March 25, 2026.
- Apple moved the request into a deeper review on April 27 and on June 26 confirmed it will develop a solution that lets iPhones share and import pasteboard items with paired accessories such as Windows PCs.
- The technical plan relies on Apple’s accessory frameworks, including an extension that notifies when items are copied and the Accessory Transport Extension to move data, and it requires partners to use AccessorySetupKit so users give a one-time consent for each paired device.
- Apple called the work a “significant engineering effort,” set development completion for fall 2027, and said the feature will appear first in a developer beta before a public release that could come in early 2028.
- The change is likely to roll out first in the European Union, will preserve user control over pasteboard access, and could narrow the productivity gap between Apple devices and Windows PCs while setting a precedent for future DMA-driven cross-platform features.