Presenting from an iPad over AirPlay comes with a new catch in iPadOS 27. With more than one window open, tapping any other app switches the projector to your full iPad screen. Whatever else you have open, from private notes to poll results, then appears in front of the room. Teacher Teddy Svoronos flagged the change, and AppleInsider staff reproduced it.
How iPadOS 27 changed AirPlay presenting
In iPadOS 26, you chose which app controlled the external display. You swiped up and picked that app from the Dock. In iPadOS 27, the app you tapped most recently takes over the external display instead.
Svoronos projects handouts from his iPad over AirPlay in class. On his blog, he explained what the switch means for him:
This means that my students see all my notes on who I want to call on, or poll results that should be hidden from them.
The behaviour shows up whether Stage Manager is on or off. Svoronos says it had not changed in the latest betas either.
Recovery depends on the app
Getting your presentation back on screen works differently in each app, according to both reports:
- GoodNotes: tapping back into the app restores its presenter view.
- Keynote: the presentation exits entirely.
- PowerPoint: you have to restart the presentation.
Neither report offers a workaround. Svoronos is asking whether anyone has found one.
Bug or intended change?
No Apple statement on the change was found as of Oct 21. AppleInsider is not sure it is a bug at all, given how consistently it behaves. It also says the app developers are not at fault, and it recommends reporting the issue to Apple.
Either way, the presenter carries the risk. A setup that teachers and speakers have relied on now behaves differently, with no warning before private content reaches a shared screen. If the change is deliberate, a prompt before another app takes over the display would go a long way.
Reporting it to Apple
Svoronos has filed Apple Feedback report FB23615646. He is asking others to file their own reports and mention that number. iPad users can also send comments through Apple’s iPad feedback page. For more on Apple’s current software cycle, see our look at the iOS 27.2 release candidate.
Sources: Teddy Svoronos, AppleInsider
