Calling WWDC23 Apple’s “most significant product launch event in nearly a decade,” a report Friday relayed new information about the event’s headlining hardware — Apple’s first AR/VR headset.
While the headset won’t go on sale for months, WWDC attendees and media can try demonstrations of it in a large new structure at Apple Park, and in future demos throughout the summer.
Want to make Siri smart again and help boost Apple’s artificial-intelligence chops across the board? A recent Apple job posting shows it seeks “machine-learning engineers with a background and/or interest in conversational and generative AI.”
“This role will play a critical part in helping Apple change the way humans learn about learning,” the listing noted.
Hard to say if the new engineers will inject more gray matter into Siri, but one source suggests they might work on device-based apps for Apple’s AR/VR headset, expected to show on Monday at WWDC23 Monday.
Rumored specs of the micro OLED panels Apple plans to use in its upcoming VR/AR headset indicate the device could deliver ultra-realistic clarity that makes virtual worlds look real.
The headset, which could be called “Reality Pro” or “Reality One,” will use two 1.41-inch micro OLEDs with a pixel density of 4,000 PPI, according to a respected display analyst.
Each year alongside WWDC, Apple runs a contest for students worldwide to create great app playgrounds using Swift code. This year 375 coders won, up from the previous 350. They’ll be among WWDC23’s virtual and in-person attendees.
“We are amazed by the talent we see from the young developers who enter our Swift Student Challenge,” said Susan Prescott, Apple vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations.
“This year’s submissions demonstrated not only the next generation’s commitment to building tools that will improve our lives, but also a willingness to embrace new technologies and tools, and deploy them in original and creative ways,” she added.
Sending video from iPhones to TVs over AirPlay will get easier in iOS 17, according to a tipster. The goal is supposedly to simplify sending video to other people’s TVs. The improvement will almost certainly be extended to iPad, too.
This is one of numerous small changes expected when iOS 17 is unveiled at WWDC23 in early June.
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This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: iOS 17 might turn your iPhone into a dashboard for your smart home. Plus, Apple’s new journaling app seems like it will arrive soon as well. With WWDC23 just weeks away, we don’t have long to wait.
Also on The CultCast:
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The always-on display in recent iPhones will get a new use in iOS 17, according to a tipster. The device will reportedly show upcoming appointments, controls for smart home accessories, and more.
We won’t have long to wait to find out if this is an accurate leak — the official unveiling of iOS 17 at WWDC23 is expected in under two weeks.
With Apple apparently on the verge of releasing its first AR/VR headset at WWDC23, an Israeli startup called Sightful has unveiled Spacetop, which it calls “the world’s first augmented-reality laptop.”
Spacetop has no dedicated display. The user dons AR glasses to view tabs across a curved, 100-inch virtual space that no one else can see. You have to wonder if this practical step into AR is the right move at the right time — or too practical for its own good.
Meta’s popular messaging service, WhatsApp, is bringing an iMessage-like editing feature. You can now edit your WhatsApp messages for up to 15 minutes after sending them.
Apple introduced similar message-editing capabilities to iMessage with iOS 16. However, WhatsApp’s message editing implementation differs from iMessage in many ways.