For nearly 50 years, Apple has navigated the rise of the PC, the smartphone revolution and a world shrunk by social media, but is it ready for the age of AI?
Apple today announced the latest iOS update and other major software including AirPods and Vision Pro, and is also expected to unveil its long-awaited AI strategy during the keynote address at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference.
In previous years, Apple has used the event to unveil ambitious products like its $3,499 Vision Pro headset, but this year the spotlight has shifted to the software that runs its iPhones, iPads and Mac computers, and the new AI tools they're incorporating.
The keynote begins at 10am PST/1pm ET, and we're updating this article as the company lays out its vision. Here's what Apple announced:
iOS 18 will let you hide secret apps
Apple's new phone software, iOS 18, due for release in September, won't have any surprising changes. But there are some tweaks you might like. iPhone displays are now more customizable. iOS 18 users will be able to place apps anywhere on the home screen, switch all apps to a “dark mode” with a black background, and choose a color scheme for groups of apps (e.g. green for travel, pink for shopping). App makers can also create their own icons on the control screen where the flashlight tool is, so you can add controls for your car, garage door, or home security system. New privacy features give you control over who can see what on your phone. You can lock apps with Face ID or hide them completely in a secret folder. When possible, use your new powers for good, not evil. Apple Maps also adds a trail option, which pairs nicely with the satellite SOS option for those lost in the woods.
Texting and messaging will also get major improvements. Chances are, you send countless text messages every day without even thinking about it. With iOS 18, you'll be able to do that even in areas without signal coverage. Apple confirmed that once the latest update is released, users will be able to send iMessages (and even standard green bubble text messages) over a satellite connection. Until now, the satellite communication capabilities built into some iPhones only allowed you to send text messages to emergency services in areas where traditional cellular service is unavailable.
Also new are new text effects that let you add emphasis, weight or whimsy to your messages, and the ability to “tap back” any emoji (not just select emojis) on messages you receive. Meanwhile, support for RCS (a more modern messaging standard that Apple reluctantly adopted late last year) should make texting between iPhones and Android devices feel more modern.
VisionPro gets a slight upgrade
The software that powers Apple's most ambitious, and perhaps most polarizing, product is getting an upgrade just four months after its launch.
When visionOS 2 launches this fall, owners of the company's $3,499 Vision Pro headset will be able to view any photo in slightly 3D, not just those taken in a special “spatial” format. The headset's virtual desktop feature, which lets users peer into a purely digital version of their Mac computer screen, has been updated to offer a much wider field of view, better suited for multitasking in virtual reality. And improvements to the headset's travel mode mean virtual windows won't slide around in front of your eyes when you use the pricey headset on a train. The company also said it's working on adding more content to the headset, including original movies.
If you're wearing Apple's popular wireless earbuds, an upcoming software update will let you nod to Siri to respond, which is more useful than it sounds: If Siri notifies you of an incoming call, for example, a quick nod or shake of the head will let Apple's virtual assistant know you're willing to talk. Apple's AirPods Pro will also have a voice isolation feature that will make your own voice clearer in conversations when moving through noisy environments.
Apple makes move into AI
Monday's announcement was long overdue for the company. Since the beginning of the year, Apple, once the world's most valuable company by market capitalization, has fallen behind companies like Microsoft and Nvidia that have thrived on the rise of the AI ​​revolution. Around the same time, Apple has begun winding down its decades-old work on self-driving electric cars, shifting many of the staff who had been working on that project to the company's burgeoning AI efforts.
Whatever the outcome, attention will be focused on how Apple navigates its entry into a field where its rivals have already enjoyed considerable success.
