Latest news with #SusanPrescott
Tahawul Tech
8 hours ago
- Tahawul Tech
Apple supercharges tools, technologies for developers to foster creativity, innovation, and design
'Developers play a vital role in shaping the experiences customers love across Apple platforms,' said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. 'With access to the on-device Apple Intelligence foundation model and new intelligence features in Xcode 26, we're empowering developers to build richer, more intuitive apps for users everywhere.' The new resources join the extensive and continuously evolving set of technologies Apple offers developers, including over 250,000 APIs that enable developers to integrate their apps with Apple's hardware and software features. These APIs span a wide range of capabilities, such as machine learning, augmented reality, health and fitness, spatial computing, and high-performance graphics. With each platform release, Apple expands and refines its technologies and tools to assist developers in bringing their ideas to life and delivering rich, responsive, and optimised experiences across Apple platforms. A beautiful new software design brings more focus to content, and delivers more expressive and delightful experiences across iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS Tahoe 26, watchOS 26, and tvOS 26,1 while keeping them all instantly familiar. The Foundation Models framework joins a suite of tools that allow developers to tap into on-device intelligence, and Xcode 26 leverages large language models like ChatGPT, giving them access to Xcode's Coding Tools and other intelligent features. CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA — Apple announced new technologies and enhancements to its developer tools to help developers create more beautiful, intelligent, and engaging app experiences across Apple platforms. Access to the on-device Apple Intelligence model, large language model integration in Xcode, and an elegant new software design across Apple platforms give developers everything they need to build beautiful modern apps with speed and confidence. New Design with Liquid Glass The elegant new design gives developers the opportunity to make their apps more expressive and delightful, while being instantly familiar. It's crafted with a new software-based material called Liquid Glass, which combines the optical qualities of glass with a sense of fluidity. This gorgeous new material extends from the smallest elements users interact with every day — like buttons, switches, sliders, text, and media controls — to larger elements, including tab bars and sidebars for navigating apps. Native frameworks like SwiftUI give developers everything they need to adopt the new design in their apps. The universal design allows developers to bring greater focus to their users' content, establishing a consistent experience when developing across Apple's platforms. With the all-new Icon Composer app, developers and designers are empowered to create visually captivating app icons that enhance their app's identity. This powerful tool helps create a consistent visual identity for app icons by annotating layers for multiple rendering modes, with advanced features that include blurring, adjusting translucency, testing specular highlights, and previewing icons in various tints. Foundation Models Framework With the Foundation Models framework, developers will be able to build on Apple Intelligence to bring users new experiences that are intelligent, available when they're offline, and that protect their privacy, using AI inference that is free of cost. The framework has native support for Swift, so developers can easily access the Apple Intelligence model with as few as three lines of code. Guided generation, tool calling, and more are all built into the framework, making it easier than ever to implement generative capabilities right into an existing app. For example, Automattic is using the framework in its Day One journaling app to bring users privacy-centric intelligence features. 'The Foundation Model framework has helped us rethink what's possible with journaling,' said Paul Mayne, head of Day One at Automattic. 'Now we can bring intelligence and privacy together in ways that deeply respect our users.' Xcode 26 Xcode 26 is packed with intelligence features and experiences to help developers make their ideas a reality. Developers can connect large language models directly into their coding experience to write code, tests, and documentation; iterate on a design; fix errors; and more. Xcode has built-in support for ChatGPT, and developers can use API keys from other providers, or run local models on their Mac with Apple silicon, to choose the model that best suits their needs. Developers can start using ChatGPT in Xcode without needing to create an account, and subscribers can connect their accounts to access more requests.2 Coding Tools help developers stay in the flow and be more productive in their tasks. Accessible from anywhere in a developer's code, Coding Tools provide suggested actions like generating a preview or a playground, or fixing an issue, and can also handle specific prompts for other tasks right inline. Xcode 26 comes with additional features to keep developers focused and productive, like a redesigned navigation experience, improvements to the localisation catalog, and improved support for Voice Control to dictate Swift code and navigate the Xcode interface entirely by voice. App Intents App Intents lets developers deeply integrate their app's actions and content with system experiences across platforms, including Siri, Spotlight, widgets, controls, and more. This year, App Intents gains support for visual intelligence. This enables apps to provide visual search results within the visual intelligence experience, allowing users to go directly into the app from those results. For instance, Etsy is leveraging visual intelligence to enhance the user experience in its iOS app by facilitating faster and more intuitive discovery of goods and products. 'At Etsy, our job is to seamlessly connect shoppers with creative entrepreneurs around the world who offer extraordinary items — many of which are hard to describe. The ability to meet shoppers right on their iPhone with visual intelligence is a meaningful unlock, and makes it easier than ever for buyers to quickly discover exactly what they're looking for while directly supporting small businesses,' said Etsy CTO Rafe Colburn. Swift 6.2 Swift 6.2 introduces powerful features to enhance performance, concurrency, and interoperability with other languages like C++, Java, and JavaScript. And now, in collaboration with the open-source community, Swift 6.2 gains support for WebAssembly. Building upon Swift 6's strict concurrency checking, Swift 6.2 simplifies writing single-threaded code. Developers can now configure modules or individual files to run on the main actor by default, eliminating the need for additional annotations. Containerisation Framework The Containerization framework enables developers to create, download, or run Linux container images directly on Mac. It's built on an open-source framework optimised for Apple silicon and provides secure isolation between container images. Tools and Resources for Games Game Porting Toolkit 3 provides developers with updated tools for evaluating and profiling their game. Developers can now customise the Metal Performance HUD, and get onscreen insights and guidance for optimising graphics code for the best possible performance in the evaluation environment. And developers can use Mac Remote Developer Tools for Windows to build Mac games on a remote Mac in their existing development workflows. Metal 4 is designed exclusively for Apple silicon, and sets the stage for the next generation of games on Apple platforms with support for advanced graphics and machine learning technologies. Developers can now run inference networks directly in their shaders to compute lighting, materials, and geometry, enabling highly realistic visual effects for their games. MetalFX Frame Interpolation generates an intermediate frame for every two input frames to achieve higher and more stable frame rates, and MetalFX Denoising makes real-time ray tracing and path tracing possible in the most advanced games. The Apple Games app gives players a new all-in-one destination for all of their games and the friends they play them with on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It also introduces a new dedicated app for developers to reengage their existing players and attract new ones. Challenges give players a new way to compete with friends in score-based showdowns, turning single-player games into shared experiences. Developers that have Game Center leaderboards for their games can easily add challenges, offering players even more ways to rally a group, crown a winner, and have a rematch. Game Overlay enhances in-game engagement by integrating Game Center features directly into gameplay. Players can access their next achievement and recent scores, and see which friends are currently playing, making it easy to start a chat — all without leaving the game. Players can also adjust settings and view the latest In-App Events, keeping them connected and in control without breaking immersion. Managed Background Assets simplifies asset hosting for developers, giving them control over how their app or game downloads assets. Developers can self-host or opt for Apple-Hosted Background Assets, where Apple handles hosting. Every Apple Developer Program membership includes 200GB of Apple hosting capacity for the App Store. Apple-Hosted Background Assets can be submitted separately from an app build. Tools to Help Protect Kids Online To ensure kids have enjoyable, enriching, and appropriate in-app experiences, developers can utilise a range of tools — including parental controls and the Sensitive Content Analysis framework — to enhance child safety and ensure privacy. Building on these existing tools, developers can use the new Declared Age Range API to deliver age-appropriate content based on a user's age range. When developers implement this API, parents can allow their children to share their age range without disclosing a birthdate or other sensitive information, enabling developers to tailor experiences accordingly. The feature is built around privacy: Age range data is shared only if parents choose to allow it, and they can disable sharing at any time. New App Store Accessibility and App Store Connect Features New Accessibility Nutrition Labels for App Store product pages help users learn which accessibility features are supported before they download an app or game. Developers can now share information in App Store Connect about their app or game's support, such as whether it includes VoiceOver, Voice Control, Larger Text, Captions, and more. An Accessibility Nutrition Label will appear on their app's product page, specific to each platform it supports. Developers can also add a URL on their app's App Store product page that links users to a website with more details. The App Store Connect app on iOS and iPadOS has been updated to let developers view TestFlight screenshots and crash feedback, in addition to receiving push notifications when beta testers provide feedback. The App Store Connect API supports these enhancements, and introduces the ability for developers to create webhooks to get real-time updates, and support for Apple-Hosted Background Assets and Game Center configuration. Availability Today's updates join the ever-expanding collection of intelligent and powerful tools and technologies Apple provides to developers. The Apple Intelligence features detailed require supported devices, which include all iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad mini (A17 Pro), and iPad and Mac models with M1 and later that have Apple Intelligence enabled and Siri and device language set to the same supported language: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, or Chinese (simplified). More languages will be coming by the end of this year: Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (traditional), and Vietnamese. For more information, visit Features are subject to change. Some features may not be available in all languages or regions, and availability may vary due to local laws and regulations. For more information about availability, visit All of these features are available for testing starting today through the Apple Developer Program at and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at
Techday NZ
12 hours ago
- Techday NZ
Apple unveils design overhaul & new AI tools for developers
Apple has announced a series of updates to its developer tools and software platforms intended to support the creation of new app experiences across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS. The company has introduced a new software design called Liquid Glass, which aims to bring an increased focus to content across Apple devices while retaining a sense of familiarity. This design extends from minor interface elements such as buttons and sliders to larger navigation features. Native frameworks like SwiftUI are designed to help developers adopt this new design. A new Icon Composer app has also been unveiled, intended to assist developers and designers in creating consistent and modern app icons with advanced features, such as blurring, translucency adjustment, and previewing icons in multiple tints. The Foundation Models framework is new to Apple's developer ecosystem and allows developers to build on-device experiences leveraging Apple Intelligence. The aim is to offer intelligent features that are available offline and prioritise user privacy. The framework supports Swift and is structured to simplify access to Apple's on-device AI models with minimal code. "Developers play a vital role in shaping the experiences customers love across Apple platforms," said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. "With access to the on-device Apple Intelligence foundation model and new intelligence features in Xcode 26, we're empowering developers to build richer, more intuitive apps for users everywhere." Automattic has already taken advantage of the Foundation Models framework for its Day One journaling app. "The Foundation Model framework has helped us rethink what's possible with journaling," said Paul Mayne, head of Day One at Automattic. "Now we can bring intelligence and privacy together in ways that deeply respect our users." Xcode 26 Apple has also updated its integrated development environment with the release of Xcode 26, adding intelligence features to assist developers in tasks such as code writing, test generation, documentation, error fixing, and more. Xcode now supports integration with large language models, including built-in support for ChatGPT, and allows for the use of third-party API keys or running models locally on Macs equipped with Apple silicon. Coding Tools in Xcode 26 offer developers suggested actions and support a range of tasks directly within the editor. Additional features include a redesigned navigation interface, improvements to localisation, and expanded voice control capabilities for coding and interface navigation. App Intents and visual intelligence This update includes enhancements to App Intents, with new support for visual intelligence. Developers can now provide visual search results that link users directly into their apps. For example, Etsy is incorporating visual intelligence to improve product discovery in its app. "At Etsy, our job is to seamlessly connect shoppers with creative entrepreneurs around the world who offer extraordinary items — many of which are hard to describe. The ability to meet shoppers right on their iPhone with visual intelligence is a meaningful unlock, and makes it easier than ever for buyers to quickly discover exactly what they're looking for while directly supporting small businesses," said Etsy CTO Rafe Colburn. Swift 6.2 and new framework support Swift 6.2 is set to bring improved performance, concurrency, and interoperability, now with expanded support for WebAssembly in conjunction with the open-source community. The new version also offers enhancements for writing single-threaded code. The Containerisation framework now enables developers to run Linux container images directly on a Mac, with an emphasis on isolation and security, and is optimised for Apple silicon. Gaming tools and APIs Updates for game developers include Game Porting Toolkit 3, new Metal 4 APIs designed for Apple silicon, and expanded support for running inference networks in shaders. Other features include MetalFX Frame Interpolation and Denoising, a new Apple Games app, Game Center enhancements, and support for managing in-game digital assets. Child safety and accessibility Developers can now use the new Declared Age Range API to deliver age-appropriate content, allowing parents to control what information is shared for their children. App Store Accessibility Nutrition Labels have also been introduced, providing users with more detailed accessibility information before downloading apps. The App Store Connect app also gains new capabilities, including viewing TestFlight feedback and crash reports, push notifications for tester feedback, enhanced support for webhooks, and expanded asset management features. The Apple Intelligence features require supported devices, including the latest iPhones, select iPads, and Macs with M1 and later processors, as well as compatible regional settings and languages. More languages are expected to be supported by the end of the year, with availability varying by region and device.
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Yahoo
Apple supercharges its tools and technologies for developers to foster creativity, innovation, and design
Access to the on-device Apple Intelligence model, large language model integration in Xcode, and an elegant new software design across Apple platforms give developers everything they need to build beautiful modern apps with speed and confidence CUPERTINO, Calif., June 09, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apple® today announced new technologies and enhancements to its developer tools to help developers create more beautiful, intelligent, and engaging app experiences across Apple platforms. A beautiful new software design brings more focus to content, and delivers more expressive and delightful experiences across iOS 26, iPadOS® 26, macOS® Tahoe 26, watchOS® 26, and tvOS® 26,1 while keeping them all instantly familiar. The Foundation Models framework joins a suite of tools that allow developers to tap into on-device intelligence, and Xcode® 26 leverages large language models like ChatGPT, giving them access to Xcode's Coding Tools and other intelligent features. These new resources join the extensive and continuously evolving set of technologies Apple offers developers, including over 250,000 APIs that enable developers to integrate their apps with Apple's hardware and software features. These APIs span a wide range of capabilities, such as machine learning, augmented reality, health and fitness, spatial computing, and high-performance graphics. With each platform release, Apple expands and refines its technologies and tools to assist developers in bringing their ideas to life and delivering rich, responsive, and optimized experiences across Apple platforms. "Developers play a vital role in shaping the experiences customers love across Apple platforms," said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. "With access to the on-device Apple Intelligence foundation model and new intelligence features in Xcode 26, we're empowering developers to build richer, more intuitive apps for users everywhere." New Design with Liquid Glass The elegant new design gives developers the opportunity to make their apps more expressive and delightful, while being instantly familiar. It's crafted with a new software-based material called Liquid Glass, which combines the optical qualities of glass with a sense of fluidity. This gorgeous new material extends from the smallest elements users interact with every day — like buttons, switches, sliders, text, and media controls — to larger elements, including tab bars and sidebars for navigating apps. Native frameworks like SwiftUI® give developers everything they need to adopt the new design in their apps. The universal design allows developers to bring greater focus to their users' content, establishing a consistent experience when developing across Apple's platforms. With the all-new Icon Composer app, developers and designers are empowered to create visually captivating app icons that enhance their app's identity. This powerful tool helps create a consistent visual identity for app icons by annotating layers for multiple rendering modes, with advanced features that include blurring, adjusting translucency, testing specular highlights, and previewing icons in various tints. Foundation Models Framework With the Foundation Models framework, developers will be able to build on Apple Intelligence™ to bring users new experiences that are intelligent, available when they're offline, and that protect their privacy, using AI inference that is free of cost. The framework has native support for Swift®, so developers can easily access the Apple Intelligence model with as few as three lines of code. Guided generation, tool calling, and more are all built into the framework, making it easier than ever to implement generative capabilities right into an existing app. For example, Automattic is using the framework in its Day One journaling app to bring users privacy-centric intelligence features. "The Foundation Model framework has helped us rethink what's possible with journaling," said Paul Mayne, head of Day One at Automattic. "Now we can bring intelligence and privacy together in ways that deeply respect our users." Xcode 26 Xcode 26 is packed with intelligence features and experiences to help developers make their ideas a reality. Developers can connect large language models directly into their coding experience to write code, tests, and documentation; iterate on a design; fix errors; and more. Xcode has built-in support for ChatGPT, and developers can use API keys from other providers, or run local models on their Mac® with Apple silicon, to choose the model that best suits their needs. Developers can start using ChatGPT in Xcode without needing to create an account, and subscribers can connect their accounts to access more requests.2 Coding Tools help developers stay in the flow and be more productive in their tasks. Accessible from anywhere in a developer's code, Coding Tools provide suggested actions like generating a preview or a playground, or fixing an issue, and can also handle specific prompts for other tasks right inline. Xcode 26 comes with additional features to keep developers focused and productive, like a redesigned navigation experience, improvements to the localization catalog, and improved support for Voice Control to dictate Swift code and navigate the Xcode interface entirely by voice. App Intents App Intents lets developers deeply integrate their app's actions and content with system experiences across platforms, including Siri®, Spotlight®, widgets, controls, and more. This year, App Intents gains support for visual intelligence. This enables apps to provide visual search results within the visual intelligence experience, allowing users to go directly into the app from those results. For instance, Etsy is leveraging visual intelligence to enhance the user experience in its iOS app by facilitating faster and more intuitive discovery of goods and products. "At Etsy, our job is to seamlessly connect shoppers with creative entrepreneurs around the world who offer extraordinary items — many of which are hard to describe. The ability to meet shoppers right on their iPhone with visual intelligence is a meaningful unlock, and makes it easier than ever for buyers to quickly discover exactly what they're looking for while directly supporting small businesses," said Etsy CTO Rafe Colburn. Swift 6.2 Swift 6.2 introduces powerful features to enhance performance, concurrency, and interoperability with other languages like C++, Java, and JavaScript. And now, in collaboration with the open-source community, Swift 6.2 gains support for WebAssembly. Building upon Swift 6's strict concurrency checking, Swift 6.2 simplifies writing single-threaded code. Developers can now configure modules or individual files to run on the main actor by default, eliminating the need for additional annotations. Containerization Framework The Containerization framework enables developers to create, download, or run Linux container images directly on Mac. It's built on an open-source framework optimized for Apple silicon and provides secure isolation between container images. Tools and Resources for Games Game Porting Toolkit 3 provides developers with updated tools for evaluating and profiling their game. Developers can now customize the Metal® Performance HUD, and get onscreen insights and guidance for optimizing graphics code for the best possible performance in the evaluation environment. And developers can use Mac Remote Developer Tools for Windows to build Mac games on a remote Mac in their existing development workflows. Metal 4 is designed exclusively for Apple silicon, and sets the stage for the next generation of games on Apple platforms with support for advanced graphics and machine learning technologies. Developers can now run inference networks directly in their shaders to compute lighting, materials, and geometry, enabling highly realistic visual effects for their games. MetalFX Frame Interpolation generates an intermediate frame for every two input frames to achieve higher and more stable frame rates, and MetalFX Denoising makes real-time ray tracing and path tracing possible in the most advanced games. The Apple Games™ app gives players a new all-in-one destination for all of their games and the friends they play them with on iPhone®, iPad®, and Mac. It also introduces a new dedicated app for developers to reengage their existing players and attract new ones. Challenges give players a new way to compete with friends in score-based showdowns, turning single-player games into shared experiences. Developers that have Game Center leaderboards for their games can easily add challenges, offering players even more ways to rally a group, crown a winner, and have a rematch. Game Overlay enhances in-game engagement by integrating Game Center features directly into gameplay. Players can access their next achievement and recent scores, and see which friends are currently playing, making it easy to start a chat — all without leaving the game. Players can also adjust settings and view the latest In-App Events, keeping them connected and in control without breaking immersion. Managed Background Assets simplifies asset hosting for developers, giving them control over how their app or game downloads assets. Developers can self-host or opt for Apple-Hosted Background Assets, where Apple handles hosting. Every Apple Developer Program membership includes 200GB of Apple hosting capacity for the App Store®. Apple-Hosted Background Assets can be submitted separately from an app build. Tools to Help Protect Kids Online To ensure kids have enjoyable, enriching, and appropriate in-app experiences, developers can utilize a range of tools — including parental controls and the Sensitive Content Analysis framework — to enhance child safety and ensure privacy. Building on these existing tools, developers can use the new Declared Age Range API to deliver age-appropriate content based on a user's age range. When developers implement this API, parents can allow their children to share their age range without disclosing a birthdate or other sensitive information, enabling developers to tailor experiences accordingly. The feature is built around privacy: Age range data is shared only if parents choose to allow it, and they can disable sharing at any time. New App Store Accessibility and App Store Connect Features New Accessibility Nutrition Labels for App Store product pages help users learn which accessibility features are supported before they download an app or game. Developers can now share information in App Store Connect about their app or game's support, such as whether it includes VoiceOver, Voice Control, Larger Text, Captions, and more. An Accessibility Nutrition Label will appear on their app's product page, specific to each platform it supports. Developers can also add a URL on their app's App Store product page that links users to a website with more details. The App Store Connect app on iOS and iPadOS has been updated to let developers view TestFlight® screenshots and crash feedback, in addition to receiving push notifications when beta testers provide feedback. The App Store Connect API supports these enhancements, and introduces the ability for developers to create webhooks to get real-time updates, and support for Apple-Hosted Background Assets and Game Center configuration. Availability Today's updates join the ever-expanding collection of intelligent and powerful tools and technologies Apple provides to developers. The Apple Intelligence features detailed require supported devices, which include all iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad mini® (A17 Pro), and iPad and Mac models with M1 and later that have Apple Intelligence enabled and Siri and device language set to the same supported language: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, or Chinese (simplified). More languages will be coming by the end of this year: Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (traditional), and Vietnamese. For more information, visit Features are subject to change. Some features may not be available in all languages or regions, and availability may vary due to local laws and regulations. For more information about availability, visit All of these features are available for testing starting today through the Apple Developer Program at and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro. Apple's six software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, visionOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, iCloud, and Apple TV+. Apple's more than 150,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth and to leaving the world better than we found it. Footnotes 1 Available on Apple TV® 4K (2nd generation and later).2 ChatGPT's data-use policies apply. For more information, see NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple Newsroom ( or email Apple's Media Helpline at © 2025 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, Xcode, SwiftUI, Apple Intelligence, Swift, Mac, Siri, Spotlight, Metal, Apple Games, iPhone, iPad, App Store, TestFlight, iPad mini, and Apple TV are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. View source version on Contacts Adam DemaAppleAdamDema@
Business Wire
20 hours ago
- Business Wire
Apple supercharges its tools and technologies for developers to foster creativity, innovation, and design
CUPERTINO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apple® today announced new technologies and enhancements to its developer tools to help developers create more beautiful, intelligent, and engaging app experiences across Apple platforms. A beautiful new software design brings more focus to content, and delivers more expressive and delightful experiences across iOS 26, iPadOS® 26, macOS® Tahoe 26, watchOS® 26, and tvOS® 26, 1 while keeping them all instantly familiar. The Foundation Models framework joins a suite of tools that allow developers to tap into on-device intelligence, and Xcode® 26 leverages large language models like ChatGPT, giving them access to Xcode's Coding Tools and other intelligent features. These new resources join the extensive and continuously evolving set of technologies Apple offers developers, including over 250,000 APIs that enable developers to integrate their apps with Apple's hardware and software features. These APIs span a wide range of capabilities, such as machine learning, augmented reality, health and fitness, spatial computing, and high-performance graphics. With each platform release, Apple expands and refines its technologies and tools to assist developers in bringing their ideas to life and delivering rich, responsive, and optimized experiences across Apple platforms. 'Developers play a vital role in shaping the experiences customers love across Apple platforms,' said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations. 'With access to the on-device Apple Intelligence foundation model and new intelligence features in Xcode 26, we're empowering developers to build richer, more intuitive apps for users everywhere.' New Design with Liquid Glass The elegant new design gives developers the opportunity to make their apps more expressive and delightful, while being instantly familiar. It's crafted with a new software-based material called Liquid Glass, which combines the optical qualities of glass with a sense of fluidity. This gorgeous new material extends from the smallest elements users interact with every day — like buttons, switches, sliders, text, and media controls — to larger elements, including tab bars and sidebars for navigating apps. Native frameworks like SwiftUI® give developers everything they need to adopt the new design in their apps. The universal design allows developers to bring greater focus to their users' content, establishing a consistent experience when developing across Apple's platforms. With the all-new Icon Composer app, developers and designers are empowered to create visually captivating app icons that enhance their app's identity. This powerful tool helps create a consistent visual identity for app icons by annotating layers for multiple rendering modes, with advanced features that include blurring, adjusting translucency, testing specular highlights, and previewing icons in various tints. Foundation Models Framework With the Foundation Models framework, developers will be able to build on Apple Intelligence™ to bring users new experiences that are intelligent, available when they're offline, and that protect their privacy, using AI inference that is free of cost. The framework has native support for Swift®, so developers can easily access the Apple Intelligence model with as few as three lines of code. Guided generation, tool calling, and more are all built into the framework, making it easier than ever to implement generative capabilities right into an existing app. For example, Automattic is using the framework in its Day One journaling app to bring users privacy-centric intelligence features. 'The Foundation Model framework has helped us rethink what's possible with journaling,' said Paul Mayne, head of Day One at Automattic. 'Now we can bring intelligence and privacy together in ways that deeply respect our users.' Xcode 26 Xcode 26 is packed with intelligence features and experiences to help developers make their ideas a reality. Developers can connect large language models directly into their coding experience to write code, tests, and documentation; iterate on a design; fix errors; and more. Xcode has built-in support for ChatGPT, and developers can use API keys from other providers, or run local models on their Mac® with Apple silicon, to choose the model that best suits their needs. Developers can start using ChatGPT in Xcode without needing to create an account, and subscribers can connect their accounts to access more requests. 2 Coding Tools help developers stay in the flow and be more productive in their tasks. Accessible from anywhere in a developer's code, Coding Tools provide suggested actions like generating a preview or a playground, or fixing an issue, and can also handle specific prompts for other tasks right inline. Xcode 26 comes with additional features to keep developers focused and productive, like a redesigned navigation experience, improvements to the localization catalog, and improved support for Voice Control to dictate Swift code and navigate the Xcode interface entirely by voice. App Intents App Intents lets developers deeply integrate their app's actions and content with system experiences across platforms, including Siri®, Spotlight®, widgets, controls, and more. This year, App Intents gains support for visual intelligence. This enables apps to provide visual search results within the visual intelligence experience, allowing users to go directly into the app from those results. For instance, Etsy is leveraging visual intelligence to enhance the user experience in its iOS app by facilitating faster and more intuitive discovery of goods and products. 'At Etsy, our job is to seamlessly connect shoppers with creative entrepreneurs around the world who offer extraordinary items — many of which are hard to describe. The ability to meet shoppers right on their iPhone with visual intelligence is a meaningful unlock, and makes it easier than ever for buyers to quickly discover exactly what they're looking for while directly supporting small businesses,' said Etsy CTO Rafe Colburn. Swift 6.2 Swift 6.2 introduces powerful features to enhance performance, concurrency, and interoperability with other languages like C++, Java, and JavaScript. And now, in collaboration with the open-source community, Swift 6.2 gains support for WebAssembly. Building upon Swift 6's strict concurrency checking, Swift 6.2 simplifies writing single-threaded code. Developers can now configure modules or individual files to run on the main actor by default, eliminating the need for additional annotations. Containerization Framework The Containerization framework enables developers to create, download, or run Linux container images directly on Mac. It's built on an open-source framework optimized for Apple silicon and provides secure isolation between container images. Tools and Resources for Games Game Porting Toolkit 3 provides developers with updated tools for evaluating and profiling their game. Developers can now customize the Metal® Performance HUD, and get onscreen insights and guidance for optimizing graphics code for the best possible performance in the evaluation environment. And developers can use Mac Remote Developer Tools for Windows to build Mac games on a remote Mac in their existing development workflows. Metal 4 is designed exclusively for Apple silicon, and sets the stage for the next generation of games on Apple platforms with support for advanced graphics and machine learning technologies. Developers can now run inference networks directly in their shaders to compute lighting, materials, and geometry, enabling highly realistic visual effects for their games. MetalFX Frame Interpolation generates an intermediate frame for every two input frames to achieve higher and more stable frame rates, and MetalFX Denoising makes real-time ray tracing and path tracing possible in the most advanced games. The Apple Games™ app gives players a new all-in-one destination for all of their games and the friends they play them with on iPhone®, iPad®, and Mac. It also introduces a new dedicated app for developers to reengage their existing players and attract new ones. Challenges give players a new way to compete with friends in score-based showdowns, turning single-player games into shared experiences. Developers that have Game Center leaderboards for their games can easily add challenges, offering players even more ways to rally a group, crown a winner, and have a rematch. Game Overlay enhances in-game engagement by integrating Game Center features directly into gameplay. Players can access their next achievement and recent scores, and see which friends are currently playing, making it easy to start a chat — all without leaving the game. Players can also adjust settings and view the latest In-App Events, keeping them connected and in control without breaking immersion. Managed Background Assets simplifies asset hosting for developers, giving them control over how their app or game downloads assets. Developers can self-host or opt for Apple-Hosted Background Assets, where Apple handles hosting. Every Apple Developer Program membership includes 200GB of Apple hosting capacity for the App Store®. Apple-Hosted Background Assets can be submitted separately from an app build. Tools to Help Protect Kids Online To ensure kids have enjoyable, enriching, and appropriate in-app experiences, developers can utilize a range of tools — including parental controls and the Sensitive Content Analysis framework — to enhance child safety and ensure privacy. Building on these existing tools, developers can use the new Declared Age Range API to deliver age-appropriate content based on a user's age range. When developers implement this API, parents can allow their children to share their age range without disclosing a birthdate or other sensitive information, enabling developers to tailor experiences accordingly. The feature is built around privacy: Age range data is shared only if parents choose to allow it, and they can disable sharing at any time. New App Store Accessibility and App Store Connect Features New Accessibility Nutrition Labels for App Store product pages help users learn which accessibility features are supported before they download an app or game. Developers can now share information in App Store Connect about their app or game's support, such as whether it includes VoiceOver, Voice Control, Larger Text, Captions, and more. An Accessibility Nutrition Label will appear on their app's product page, specific to each platform it supports. Developers can also add a URL on their app's App Store product page that links users to a website with more details. The App Store Connect app on iOS and iPadOS has been updated to let developers view TestFlight® screenshots and crash feedback, in addition to receiving push notifications when beta testers provide feedback. The App Store Connect API supports these enhancements, and introduces the ability for developers to create webhooks to get real-time updates, and support for Apple-Hosted Background Assets and Game Center configuration. Availability Today's updates join the ever-expanding collection of intelligent and powerful tools and technologies Apple provides to developers. The Apple Intelligence features detailed require supported devices, which include all iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad mini® (A17 Pro), and iPad and Mac models with M1 and later that have Apple Intelligence enabled and Siri and device language set to the same supported language: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, Japanese, Korean, or Chinese (simplified). More languages will be coming by the end of this year: Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (traditional), and Vietnamese. For more information, visit Features are subject to change. Some features may not be available in all languages or regions, and availability may vary due to local laws and regulations. For more information about availability, visit All of these features are available for testing starting today through the Apple Developer Program at and a public beta will be available through the Apple Beta Software Program next month at Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro. Apple's six software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, visionOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, iCloud, and Apple TV+. Apple's more than 150,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth and to leaving the world better than we found it. Footnotes 1 Available on Apple TV® 4K (2nd generation and later). 2 ChatGPT's data-use policies apply. For more information, see © 2025 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, Xcode, SwiftUI, Apple Intelligence, Swift, Mac, Siri, Spotlight, Metal, Apple Games, iPhone, iPad, App Store, TestFlight, iPad mini, and Apple TV are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Apple Design Awards 2025: Top 12 apps and games in the winners list
Apple has announced the winners and finalists of the 2025 Apple Design Awards, honouring 12 apps and games that stood out for their creativity and design. These winners, selected from around the world, were chosen for showing innovation, smart ideas, and strong technical skills. The company says that the awards highlight one app and one game in each of six categories: Delight and Fun, Innovation, Interaction, Inclusivity, Social Impact, and Visuals and Graphics. The winners were picked from 36 finalists who all showed excellent design in their apps or games. Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations said 'Developers continue to push the boundaries of what's possible, creating apps and games that are not only beautifully designed but also deeply impactful. We're excited to celebrate this incredible group of winners and finalists at WWDC and spotlight the innovation and craftsmanship they bring to each experience.' Winners and finalists of the 2025 Apple Design Awards Delight and Fun by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Soluções de energia de confiança para Data Centers de IA Siemens Energy Learn More Undo Winners and finalists in this category provide memorable, engaging, and satisfying experiences enhanced by Apple technologies. App: CapWords Developer: HappyPlan Tech (China) CapWords is a dynamic language learning tool that transforms images of everyday objects into interactive stickers — helping learners explore new words in a more intuitive and visual way. Supporting nine languages, the app is a delightful way to learn independently while immersing users in their surroundings. Game: Balatro Developer: LocalThunk (Canada) Balatro is a satisfying fusion of poker, solitaire, and deck-building with roguelike elements. Players combine poker hands with joker cards — each with their own unique abilities — to create varied synergies. Hallmarked by clever details, gripping gameplay challenges players to advance their scores by crafting original decks to beat devious blinds and secure victory. Finalists for this category include Lumy by Raja V; Denim by Feel Good Tech; Thank Goodness You're Here! by Panic; and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown by Ubisoft Montpellier . Innovation Winners and finalists in this category provide a state-of-the-art experience through novel use of Apple technologies that set them apart in their genre. App: Play Developer: Rabbit 3 Times (United States) Play is a sophisticated yet accessible tool that lets users build interactive prototypes with SwiftUI frameworks. Its thoughtfully crafted user interface is both powerful and easy to navigate, helping designers create interactive prototypes and collaborate across Mac and iPhone, all synced in real time for seamless creativity. Game: PBJ — The Musical Developer: Philipp Stollenmayer (Germany) PBJ — The Musical is snack-based Shakespeare, a charming game that tells the story of Romeo and Juliet with condiments. PBJ creatively mixes rhythm-based gameplay with narrative storytelling and a wonderful soundtrack. And with haptic feedback, clever camera work, and fun dialogue, it's joyful from the start. Finalists for this category include Moises by Capybara by Digital Workroom Ltd; Pawz by Bootloader Studio Holdings Private Limited; and Gears & Goo by Resolution Games AB. Interaction Winners and finalists in this category deliver intuitive interfaces and effortless controls that are perfectly tailored to their platform. App: Taobao Developer: Zhejiang Taobao Network (China) Taobao offers a convenient and engaging shopping experience on Apple Vision Pro, providing incredible 3D models comparable to their real-life counterparts. The immersive experience enhances shopping for users, taking into consideration placement, position, controls, size, and function, and giving people the ability to compare items side by side from an extensive selection of products. Game: DREDGE Developer: Black Salt Games (New Zealand) DREDGE blends slow-burn horror with exploration and adventure. Players take the helm of a fishing boat to navigate eerie islands, uncover strange wildlife, and piece together a haunting mystery. The game offers seamless interactions and a fun world of hidden treasures across iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Finalists for this category include iA Writer by Information Architects AG; Mela - Recipe Manager by Silvio Rizzi; Gears & Goo by Resolution Games AB; and Skate City: New York by Snowman . Inclusivity Winners and finalists in this category provide a great experience for all by reflecting a variety of backgrounds, abilities, and languages. App: Speechify Developer: Speechify (United States) With support for hundreds of voices in over 50 languages, Speechify is a powerful tool that transforms written text into audio with ease. Designed with accessibility at its core, and by offering features like Dynamic Type and VoiceOver, the app serves as a vital resource for people with dyslexia, ADHD, and low vision, as well as anyone who learns best by listening. Game: Art of Fauna Developer: Klemens Strasser (Austria) Beautifully illustrated and mindfully designed, Art of Fauna is a puzzle game that blends vintage-inspired wildlife imagery with a deep commitment to inclusivity and conservation. Players can solve puzzles by rearranging visual elements or reordering descriptive text, making gameplay uniquely interactive. With features like full VoiceOver support and haptic feedback, accessibility is woven throughout the experience. Finalists for this category include Evolve by GTA Solutions; Train Fitness by Train Fitness; puffies. by Lykke Studios; and Land of Livia by Split Atom Labs. Social Impact Winners and finalists in this category improve lives in a meaningful way and shine a light on crucial issues. App: Watch Duty Developer: Sherwood Forestry Service (United States) During devastating wildfires in Southern California, Watch Duty once again served as a lifeline, delivering up-to-the-minute updates, evacuation information, and critical resources with clarity and reliability. The app reports information like active fire perimeters and progress, wind speed and direction, and evacuation orders. Game: Neva Developer: Devolver Digital (United States) Visually stunning and emotionally resonant, Neva is an action-adventure tale that follows a girl and her wolf companion through a beautiful world in decline. As the seasons shift, so does their relationship — offering a quiet meditation on care, connection, and the cost of environmental loss. With themes of friendship and leadership, players guide the pair through breathtaking landscapes, and a story that is as moving as it is timely. Finalists for this category include Ground News by Snapwise; Opal by Opal OS; Ahoy! From Picardy by Daniel Jones; and Art of Fauna by Klemens Strasser. Visuals and Graphics Winners and finalists in this category feature stunning imagery, skillfully drawn interfaces, and high-quality animations with a distinctive and cohesive theme. App: Feather: Draw in 3D Developer: Sketchsoft (South Korea) This drawing tool allows users to transform 2D designs into 3D masterpieces. Developed with a focus on creativity and user experience, Feather makes it easy for people of all skill levels to build advanced 3D modelling designs on iPad, drawing on touch and Apple Pencil interactions to help users bring their imaginations to life. Game: Infinity Nikki Developer: Infold Games (Singapore) With its enchanted realm of colour, detail, and rendering, Infinity Nikki is a true visual achievement. This cozy open-world adventure challenges players to collect wonderful things, and is packed with magical outfits, whimsical creatures, and unexpected moments. Finalists for this category include Vocabulary by Monkey Taps; CellWalk by Timothy Davison; Control Ultimate Edition by Remedy Entertainment PLC; and Neva by Devolver Digital. Scam Series: The "Meme Malware" WhatsApp Scam
