tvOS 16 is the eighth release of tvOS, shipped September 12, 2022, with the third-generation Apple TV 4K following that fall. A cross-device year: Nintendo Switch controllers (Joy-Con and Pro) joined the pairing roster, smart-home standards Matter and expanded Thread support landed with the new hardware, and the platform absorbed the generation's shared frameworks quietly.

Nintendo controller support; Matter smart-home support; cross-device connectivity APIs for iPhone-to-TV app experiences; and HDR10+ playback with the 2022 hardware.

The quietest tvOS cycle — its Matter adoption mattered most, slotting the Apple TV as a home hub in the standard the industry finally shared — with the interface's turn arriving the next year.