Apple is reworking the initial iOS 28, iPadOS 28 and macOS 28 development cycle. It’s giving engineers more time to explore ideas and build new features for next year’s updates.
The change affects the first of Apple’s three internal software development milestones, says Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman in his Power On newsletter.
A new playbook for iOS 28
Apple typically follows an eight-week development cycle, split into three milestones known as M1, M2 and M3. Each development cycle runs for eight weeks, split evenly between four weeks of coding and four weeks of what Apple calls “convergence.” In the latter, developers integrate new features into the operating system.
For iOS 28 and macOS 28, known internally as “Bell” and “Poppy,” Apple is making a change to how the first M1 milestone works. Instead of splitting the eight weeks evenly, Apple is giving engineers six weeks to explore ideas and build new features, reports Bloomberg’s Gurman in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter.
More time to build, less time to integrate
The extra coding time means less time to integrate the new features into the operating system, two weeks less than usual. However, since Apple isn’t changing the M2 and M3 milestones, this shouldn’t be a concern.
“Employees say they like the change, indicating that it creates more time for coming up with ideas and exploring them before needing to lock things in. Development of the M2 milestone kicks off on Monday, and this is the period when the company will start to finalize what it plans to include for users,” Gurman writes.
Apple is expected to unveil iOS 28 in June 2027, about seven months from now, with a public release still nearly 10 months away.
Rajesh has been writing about consumer technology for over a decade, with a strong focus on iPhones, Macs and Apple’s ecosystem. He enjoys digging into Apple software updates, hardware changes, and discovering new Mac apps that make work faster and more enjoyable.
You can reach out to him at mail[at]rajeshpandey.me.
