In a press release published yesterday, Apple has finally announced the dates of its much-awaited Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). The 2022 edition of the event will be held online and run from June 6 to June 10. As expected, developers around the globe are invited to join the conference absolutely free of cost.
The pandemic is the main reason why Apple decided to transform the WWDC into an online event. Before that, it used to be held in person at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose. Many expected the event to get back to its normal shape this year as Apple has already started to ask its employees to return to the office from April. However, the tech biggie decided otherwise.
The Cupertino, California-based tech firm seems to have gained confidence from the success of the virtual events of 2020 and 2021. So, it’s all set to make the most of the online event by showcasing the company’s latest innovations pertaining to iPadOS, macOS, iOS, tvOS, and watchOS. The third-party developers, on the other hand, will be given access to Apple technologies and engineers to learn a thing or two about creating interactive experiences and revolutionary apps.
It shouldn’t surprise many that Apple has decided to make the WWDC 2022 an online-only event. None of the major tech events and conferences have returned to their actual formats due to the ongoing pandemic. While some are being held as online-only events, others have got a hybrid format.
Google’s I/O conference, which is set to be held on May 11 and 12, will be a hybrid event. The organizers chose the hybrid format even for the Game Developers Conference (GDC) held last month. However, the event witnessed notable in-person attendance.
The 2022 WWDC is expected to be a crucial edition of the event. Apple, other than launching major updates of its software, will organize special developer sessions on particular topics such as learning labs, digital lounges, and APIs. Other than that, the tech firm has also promised to offer as much localized content as possible for making the event truly global.
Most developers have openly expressed their love of the original physical event of the pre-pandemic era. According to them, those editions of the WWDC used to give them great networking opportunities. However, some believe that Apple should stick to the current online-only format as it’s allowing many more developers to participate in the event (particularly the ones located outside the US).
Other than organizing the WWDC, this year Apple will also host the third edition of the Swift Student Challenge. Students are invited to develop an app on a given topic using Swift Playground. The participants will have to submit their creations by April 25.