Ubuntu 26.04 LTS Resolute Raccoon: What's New
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS ships GNOME 50 on full Wayland, Linux kernel 7.0, TPM-backed disk encryption, and native CUDA and ROCm support, with five years of updates.
An Ubuntu LTS release is the one most people actually run, so the changes in 26.04 matter more than any interim version. Resolute Raccoon completes the long march to Wayland, ships a new kernel, and quietly becomes a serious platform for AI work. It is also supported until 2031.
Quick answer
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS "Resolute Raccoon" was released on April 23, 2026. It ships GNOME 50 running fully on Wayland (completing the shift away from X.org), Linux kernel 7.0, TPM-backed full-disk encryption, and native support for NVIDIA CUDA and AMD ROCm. As an LTS release it receives security updates and critical fixes for five years, until April 2031.
Key takeaways
- GNOME 50 on full Wayland brings per-monitor scaling, native gestures, and no screen tearing.
- Linux kernel 7.0 improves hardware support, power management, and the scheduler.
- TPM-backed full-disk encryption raises the security baseline.
- Native CUDA and ROCm support makes it a strong AI/ML development platform.
- As an LTS, it is supported for five years, through April 2031.
The Wayland transition is finally done
For years Ubuntu shipped both X.org and Wayland session options, with Wayland as the increasingly-default but not-quite-universal choice. Ubuntu 26.04 completes the upstream shift: GNOME 50 fully embraces Wayland, delivering smoother visuals, per-monitor scaling, native touch and gesture support, and the elimination of screen tearing.
For most users this is invisible in the best way, things just work better. If you depend on an application or workflow that assumed X.org, this is the release to test carefully, because the fallback you may have relied on is being phased out. The upside is a genuinely more modern display stack across every kind of hardware.
Kernel 7.0 and hardware support
Ubuntu 26.04 ships Linux kernel 7.0, which brings broad improvements across hardware and driver support. That means better coverage for recent CPUs and GPUs, plus gains in power management and scheduler performance. On laptops, kernel-level power improvements translate directly into battery life, and newer silicon that needed out-of-tree drivers on older kernels is more likely to work out of the box.
If you have been holding off upgrading because your hardware was too new for the last LTS, kernel 7.0 is the reason to revisit. Newer machines that struggled on 24.04 stand a much better chance here.
Built for AI development
The headline for developers is native support for the major AI/ML toolkits. Ubuntu 26.04 supports NVIDIA CUDA and AMD ROCm natively, positioning it as a ready platform for both AI development and production workloads. Getting a GPU compute stack working on Linux has historically been a weekend of driver wrangling; native support meaningfully reduces that friction.
Combined with kernel 7.0's better GPU coverage, this makes 26.04 a sensible base for anyone running local models or training workloads. If you are choosing what to run on it, our roundup of the best open-weight LLMs covers the models that pair well with a CUDA or ROCm setup, and Docker Model Runner is a clean way to serve them locally.
Security and application updates
On security, Ubuntu 26.04 adds TPM-backed full-disk encryption, tying disk encryption to the machine's hardware security module for a stronger baseline. It also improves application permission prompting, extends Livepatch to Arm-based servers, and introduces more Rust-based utilities for memory safety.
The bundled applications got refreshed across the board:
| Application | Version in 26.04 |
|---|---|
| Firefox | 150 |
| LibreOffice | 25.8 |
| Thunderbird | 140 "Eclipse" |
| GIMP | 3.2 |
| GNOME | 50 |
| Linux kernel | 7.0 |
These are substantial jumps from 24.04, so even if the desktop feels familiar, the software underneath is considerably newer.
Should you upgrade now?
If you run 24.04 LTS in production, the usual advice applies: wait for the first point release (26.04.1) before mass deployment, and test your critical applications against the completed Wayland transition first. For new installs, workstations, and especially AI development machines, 26.04 is the version to start with today.
Desktop users on interim releases like 25.10 should move to the LTS for the five-year support window, which runs to April 2031. That longevity is the whole reason LTS releases exist: install once, get security updates for years, and skip the churn.
What to do right now
- Back up before upgrading; treat the Wayland transition as a compatibility checkpoint.
- Test critical applications that may have assumed X.org.
- For AI work, confirm your CUDA or ROCm stack against kernel 7.0.
- Enable TPM-backed full-disk encryption on new installs for a stronger baseline.
- Production teams should wait for 26.04.1 before mass rollout.
- New installs and workstations can move to 26.04 now for the five-year support window.
Frequently asked questions
When was Ubuntu 26.04 LTS released and how long is it supported?
It was released on April 23, 2026, and as an LTS it receives security updates and critical bug fixes for five years, until April 2031. Extended support options can lengthen that further for eligible users.
Is X.org gone in Ubuntu 26.04?
Ubuntu 26.04 completes the shift to Wayland with GNOME 50 running fully on it. If you depend on X.org-specific behavior, test carefully, because the desktop experience is now Wayland-first.
Is 26.04 good for AI and machine learning?
Yes. It ships native support for NVIDIA CUDA and AMD ROCm and pairs that with kernel 7.0's improved GPU coverage, making it a strong base for local model inference and training workloads.
Should I upgrade from 24.04 right away?
For production, wait for the 26.04.1 point release and test your applications first, especially against the Wayland transition. New installs and workstations can move to 26.04 now to get the five-year support window.
What kernel and GNOME versions does it ship?
Ubuntu 26.04 ships Linux kernel 7.0 and GNOME 50, along with refreshed applications like Firefox 150, LibreOffice 25.8, Thunderbird 140, and GIMP 3.2.
