California based multinational technology company Apple has formally revealed that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will be held virtually this year citing recent developments caused by COVID-19 pandemic.
The announcement was least surprising as several organizations from all segments have been moving to online presentations for events like product launches, shareholder meetings, etc cognizant of efforts undertaken to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Apple’s premier annual event Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will begin on June 22, a few weeks later than it is regularly listed, and will be free on the Apple Developer app and website for all developers. Despite its virtual nature, Apple guarantees this year’s version to be the ‘biggest’.
Phil Schiller, Senior VP, Worldwide Marketing, Apple
“WWDC20 will be our biggest yet, bringing together our global developer community of more than 23 million in an unprecedented way for a week in June to learn about the future of Apple platforms”
“We can’t wait to meet online… and share with them all of the new tools we’ve been working on to help them create even more incredible apps and services.”
As always, Apple is assumed to announce several major software updates, led by iOS 14, which powers the iPhone and is a critical component in the Apple ecosystem that includes its two other major elements, MacOS and iPadOS.
Apple is also expected to welcome more student developers into its fold at this year’s WWDC. In 2019, it gathered over 350 of them from over 37 countries.
“Students are an integral part of the Apple developer community,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice-president of software engineering.
“We want to recognize and celebrate the creative contributions of our young developers from around the world. We can’t wait to see this next generation of innovative thinkers turn their ideas into a reality.”
Apple is urging developers to download the Apple Developer app where additional WWDC20 program information – including keynote, session and lab schedules and more – will be shared in June. Information will also be made available on the Apple Developer website and by e-mail.
