WWDC 2025 live: Apple to radically change the look of the iPhone at major conference – UK Times

Last year might have been the AI event (see below), but the year before in 2023 was the Vision Pro event, when Apple finally introduced its long-rumoured headset to the world. It didn’t actually arrive until later that year, but WWDC saw the unveiling of a project that had been only talked about for years before that.

Just like Apple Intelligence, it brought excitement at launch. And just like Apple Intelligence, that excitement has receded a little, into questions over what Apple has planned, and whether that plan will work.

Apple will show off new VisionOS features this year. Rumours suggest there will be a new way of scrolling with your eyes and other changes. And it will probably mention some new content, given that videos and other similar experiences have become the central marketing tool of the augmented reality headset.

But don’t expect loads. The headset has gone a little quiet in the years since it was released – and there’s nothing to suggest that Apple is turning the volume back up.

Last year, in 2024, Apple focused heavily on its AI features, which it revealed under the branding of Apple Intelligence. Some of them – image playgrounds, the summaries of notifications – have since arrived. But many of the most exciting ones haven’t.

Most notable is the new Siri, which Apple showed off heavily during last year’s event, with promises that it would be able to understand your personal context and use it to do powerful new things. Users could ask “when is my mum’s flight arriving”, for instance, and the phone would pick through emails and online information to answer it or even take actions on your behalf.

Then, in March, it said those features weren’t ready, and didn’t give any indication of when they would be. That not only led to disappointment about not being able to use them, but questions over what had gone wrong. Longtime positive Apple commentator John Gruber said there was “something rotten in the state of Cupertino”.

It all means that Apple will be in a difficult position with respect to AI at this year’s event. Will it want to take back the narrative with more new features, or updates on the existing ones? Or will it stay quiet for fear of a repeat, or allowing more discussion of how it has been delayed?

Rumours suggest it will go for the latter. While there might be some AI-branded features, the company is not expected to lean heavily into the technology this year. Instead, expect the company to look at its redesign and other new features.

… to The Independent’s live coverage of this year’s WWDC event, where Apple is expected to show off wide-ranging changes to its operating systems.