Apple, Inc.’s WWDC: What to Expect

Apple is already far behind in the smart speaker race when other giants like Google and Amazon have been flaunting their versions of smart speakers since a year ago. So it’s no surprise we already know a fair bit about what we can expect from the event, which should be filled to the brim with new product announcements, despite it officially primarily targeting developers for Apple’s platforms. An exact timeframe of the launch window was not given. It all starts with a Siri speaker, which could be just the thing to help bridge the gaps between Apple’s disparate products and operating systems.

Most of the buzz has been around Apple announcing improvements to its Siri voice assistant. Most of the rival smart speakers often lack support for Apple services such as Apple Music.

Gadget geeks and enthusiasts will have only a few more days to wait to confirm these speculations, including when the devices will begin shipping out, as the WWDC 2017 begins on Monday, June 5, and ends on Friday, June 9. Perhaps Apple will announce a refresh that does a better job of promoting original video programming, just as Apple prepares to release Carpool Karaoke in August.

The strength of the Apple brand alone would provide the company with a competitive advantage with fans of the company, noted Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research. PATH TO THE MONEY Now, an iPhone user can say, “Hey Siri, I’d like a ride to the airport” or “Hey Siri, order me a vehicle”, and Siri will open the Uber or Lyft ride service app and start booking a trip.

Bloomberg also revealed that Apple won’t integrate a screen in its first iteration of the Siri Speaker. Without compatible hardware, users might be more likely to opt for the Echo or Home, and therefore use streaming music offerings such as Spotify, Amazon Prime Music or Google Play, rather than Apple Music. Much of this is up in the air as Apple’s focus often appears to wander and leave the MacBook Air without a clear upgrade path. Apple hasn’t introduced a totally new hardware category since the Apple Watch in 2015. Another report also backed the claim that Apple would revamp Siri this year. Last year, Apple made a change in how it splits App Store sales between itself and developers of subscription based apps to give developers 85 percent of apps that are subscribed to for more than one year.

Inventec Corp., the Taipei manufacturer that already makes the AirPod wireless headphones, will add the speaker to its Apple repertoire, the people said. Upon further investigation, this irregularity was certainly not a misprint or a mistake on Google’s part.

Siri found its way to the desktop at WWDC a year ago, so some new features could be in order.