Apple sends out invites for WWDC 26
It's a yearly occurrence.
Apple announced today its yearly WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) at Apple Park on June 8th. The company is set to announce brand new updates for its software platforms, such as iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS, and more AI updates are certainly in store. While Apple typically does not reveal much in the way of hints as to what is going to be announced at their events, there was a subtle hint of something AI in the announcement today. Apple says, "WWDC26 will spotlight incredible updates for Apple platforms, including AI advancements," in addition to the current Apple Intelligence features that exist in Apple's operating systems.
This mention is interesting because it displays a cautoius, but nevertheless, growing, attention to the AI space once again, after the cascade of mishaps following the release of Apple Intelligence in late 2024. Apple switched focus during WWDC last year with the announcement of the iOS redesign with Liquid Glass and the unified naming scheme. This may have allowed for the spotlight to be shifted away from Apple Intelligence for a little while as it was dealt with in greater detail. While this is still speculation, this may also allow for a better, more complete showing of Apple Intelligence's current capabilities ready for release to the public in September.
These AI features may also be only tangentially related to Apple Intelligence and may have more to do with other components of their products, like Machine Learning and AI features in Pro Apps like Stem Splitter in Logic Pro. This being the only focus for AI, however, is doubtful, as the entire world is still waiting for the updated Siri.
A fully AI-driven Siri has been expected to arrive for quite some time now, originally being announced at WWDC 24, and slated for release in early 2025. That, however, did not come true, with delays and pushbacks harming the image of the new Siri. Now, reports are saying that it should finally be ready for release following WWDC 26 in iOS 27.
Apple has also recently signed deals with Google, allowing for the new AI Siri to be based on Google's Gemini. This new AI Siri is also set to be a more ChatGPT-like, chatbot style assistant, though the actual interface of this is still unclear. It is safe to assume that it will still be controlled through voice, but a text-to-Siri option may be more prominent than it is now. However, this is not set in stone, and Apple could think differently with this AI Siri.
As for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS 27, the updates are expected to be more related to performance and improvements to the overall experience and stability. Reports from Mark Gurman have previously stated that battery life and performance are key focuses in the new OSes and that these upgrades will "cleanup" the code from previous updates, especially with iOS 26 and its baked-in apps. This should enable better overall stability and interactions with the operating systems.
This tidying-up of the whole iOS experience, both the design, and the AI features, may also improve the image of the OSes themselves. People have not been too happy with the recent updates, and allowing for space to fix these issues may help aid Apple's image.
These new updates should bring noticeable changes to the operating systems and new AI features that were promised years ago may finally right some of the wrongs of Apple Intelligence. We will have to wait and see what Apple does soon.
