WWDC 2025 Likely 'Smaller-Scale' Than Past Two WWDCs, Here's Why

[klasma]

I think there’s still a place for shortcuts as they don’t require talking to your computer. A shortcut clicked in the dock or menu bar a click away saves the user having to describe their needs.

Yes, of course. I was talking about how apps currently have to explicitly define the functions to be made available to Shortcuts, instead of everything an app exposes in its UI being automatically available.

Regarding Shortcuts, it would be conceivable in the future to be able to define the task performed by a Shortcut with natural-language instructions, which when the Shortcut is triggered is then executed by AI. The same task can be executed as a one-off by speaking or typing the instructions for immediate execution, or be saved to a Shortcut for repeated execution. Shortcuts are orthogonal to AI, in that sense.

 

[hagar]

Good, we need more stable software and less gimmicky hardware

Sure, but stability and bug fixes are not mentioned in the article. So the new design could be lipstick on a pig. Let’s wait and see. Maybe this is the Snow leopard release we’ve all been waiting for.

 

[garranhado]

WWDC is an event for developers, we all expect software technologies.

Apple's software has been a disgrace in recent years, it's time for this to change.

…one more thing… bring back in-person event!!! Be cool again!

 

[xDKP]

We need an OSX Snow Leopard year please

 

[canyonblue737]

We have heard a lot of conflicting things about this new UI coming to "everything." We've heard it is a huge change (in particular for iPadOS with menus etc.) with all new ways of interacting and we've also heard it's more of a reskin of the current UI with glass like elements. I think WWDC will be a huge success and heavily hyped despite the lack of major new AI features *if* there really has been a major behind the scenes rethink of the OSs UIs across all the platforms... it just seems unlikely IMHO this is really the case... a major rethink would have been years in the making and I think unlikely to launch on everything at once so the fact these rumors suddenly hit 6-8 months out of WWDC and seem to encompass "everything" points to very much a reskin of the present UI in part to have something flashy to distract from the fact AI is way, way behind. I have to admit I started using AI 18 months ago and now I'm a paying $20 a month subscriber to ChatGPT who uses it extensively daily, it's changed many ways I do things... Apple likely has one more year until this starts doing permanent damage they can't recover from because everyday more and more people are discovering how AI can help their lives. Apple *must, must, must* deliver a powerful integrated large language model AI in every OS in 2026 that is close to the level of ChatGPT, Grok and others because they are running out of time.

 

[Robert.Walter]

“iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, tvOS 26, and watchOS 26…”

This is not the way to refer to this year’s crop in the aggregate.

Better is: “2026 iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS”.

Please update your style book accordingly.

 

[nt5672]

If it was carefully done by skilled designers with a great sense of software design, who knew what to changes and how much, then most people would be able to accept it after a period of adjustment. The problem is it could easily be many changes for the worse knowing Apple of recent.

Agree, Apple current software UI design strategy is:
1. to make the UI spacious (lots of unused space),
2. make it cryptic (so the user has to hunt around for functionality),
3. leave out any functionality that the user actually wants (because Apple knows best),
4. include advertising and functionality that Apple thinks (incorrectly, I might add) will drive users to Apple services.

 

[garranhado]

By ChatGPT

A new API to allow UserDefaults to sync securely across devices via iCloud. This will replace the legacy NSUbiquitousKeyValueStore with a more robust, Swift-native solution that includes conflict resolution, encryption, and data migration.

 

[livetofail]

So there will be less lies and CGI and more facts?😱

 

[seek3r]

Am I the only one who literally not only doesnt care about getting more of the current mainstream generative “AI” (as opposed to the more traditional targeted use machine learning uses Apple’s been doing for ages) but actively would prefer not to have it?

Hell, I dont even want Siri more conversational, my biggest pet peeve is Siri could do language recognition a bit better so it gets my shopping list and reminders a touch better, and that doesnt require a chatgpt style huge LLM.

Like this keeps being described as a deficit apple has to catch up on because it’s the current hotness and I’m sitting her going “why?”, “is apple really behind on what customers *actually* want?”

 

[seek3r]

Agree, Apple current software UI design strategy is:
1. to make the UI spacious (lots of unused space),

Yeah, this is irritating, though I will say for aging folks like my parents it seems to make things easier to see and use, so maybe that’s the reasoning

2. make it cryptic (so the user has to hunt around for functionality),

FWIW, as annoying as that is, it’s also a result of them exposing more options in settings, particularly around accessibility, without a lot of folks who are terrified of a CLI needing to open a terminal, which is arguably a good thing. The real problem is the search in settings needs to be a touch better at surfacing the settings

3. leave out any functionality that the user actually wants (because Apple knows best),

I disagree with that, see above. I thinm on that they’re actually exposing way more than they used to

4. include advertising and functionality that Apple thinks (incorrectly, I might add) will drive users to Apple services.

Outside of the AppleTV app, which is annoying AF with that, I dont really see much of that in the UI, what examples do you have?

 

[Atog]

Apple *must, must, must* deliver a powerful integrated large language model AI in every OS in 2026 that is close to the level of ChatGPT, Grok and others because they are running out of time.

Exactly. Apple is heading the same way Nokia did. They had a lot of time but the game has changed. And LLM and AI in general is a new distruptor.

 

[svish]

Waiting to see everything that Apple will announce. Will be nice if there is some new hardware also.

 

[Black Belt]

If this is true then Tim Cook has become pointless, can’t deliver and needs to be terminated

 

[1037]

Even Apple toned it down a little..

 

[Donkey Man]

If this is all Apple has for WWDC 2025, it feels like a missed opportunity. A glassy UI facelift might look pretty, but it’s hardly exciting when the rest of the tech world is sprinting ahead in AI. The fact that even some Apple employees expect a letdown says a lot.

And if Apple keeps lagging in generative AI, no amount of translucent menus will hide that. Let’s hope 2026 isn’t too late for them to catch up.

When you have zero innovation and zero vision, what can one expect? Nothing, of course.

 

[bigandtasty]

Hoping for new watch bands

 

[paulovsouza]

No one asked Apple to do AI other than the investors. Clean the OS up (especially photos), make it stable and I’m happy. It’s the reporters who are disappointed, because they want to pin AI models against each other, because it’s a trendy topic. Apple needs to go back to its roots, don’t be first be the best.

 

[SFjohn]

Its about money Timmy has got to keep the board of directors and investors and his own pockets full .

That’s the definition of what a CEO does, of course Tim does this by keeping his customers happy (excluding the MaxRumors doom crowd obviously)… 😉

 

[spazzcat]

I'm liking the sounds of this WWDC more & more. Focus on what you're good at & can actually deliver! What a concept.

Vs giving us the roadmap for the next 12 months. Now people will whine Apple never tells us what they are working on ...

 

[spazzcat]

But, but what about new emojis?

If you have any ideas you can learn now to sumbit a request here ...

Guidelines for Submitting Unicode® Emoji Proposals

 

[TruthAboveAllElse]

Good, we need more stable software and less gimmicky hardware

And more focus on initiative UX. That used to be Apple’s specialty. Now they think usable means hiding everything in unorganized menus.

 

[jjudson]

This is all Tim's way of saying (finally):

"We got nothin'..."

 

[nt5672]

Outside of the AppleTV app, which is annoying AF with that, I dont really see much of that in the UI, what examples do you have?

Maybe advertising is not, but the subtle hints are there.

The Music app which is impossible to use if you own a large legal collection of CDs and DVDs.

Every update forcing on iCloud usage.

Focus on iCould sharing ignoring the other sharing platforms like Sync and Dropbox. I mean how many clicks does one have to make to share on anything other than iCould. If iCould actually worked well, no one would care, but Apple went to forcing it, before they made it work correctly.

Time Machine won't work reliably with a NAS. Apple's recommendation, hook a disk drive up directly or use iCould.

Etc. you can see it in every Apple App and OS if you look for it. It used to be Apple was the King of interoperability. Now they only work with iApple and everything else is left to fend for itself.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

Yes, for better or worse it is the future.

It's a future, not the future. There will always be tech-relative situations that AI doesn't fit, including on mobile.