Top highlights from Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference

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Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference was held on June 5, Monday in Cupertino, California, serving as the finale for a day of software and hardware announcements.

The company unveiled an overhauled version of its iPhone and iPad software, adding new features that let users make diary entries and turn their idle phones into a smart display.

It debuted the features at its Worldwide Developers Conference and as part of iOS and iPadOS 17, users will also get improved auto-correct capabilities and can leave video messages for friends when calling on FaceTime.

In other moves, Apple is bringing its Health app to the iPad. The company also showed off a new Mac operating system called Sonoma. It unveiled three revamped Macs earlier during the presentation.

Here are the key takeaways from the Worldwide Developers Conference

• Apple’s much-awaited headset will cost $3,499 and come in early 2024. The Vision Pro will usher in ‘spatial computing’ in the way that the iPhone sparked mobile computing, the company said.
• The company highlighted artificial intelligence (AI) tools peppered throughout its products. Filling PDFs, automatic transcription, suggesting journal prompts and re-creating your face in augmented reality are some of the AI features touted.
• A new 15–inch MacBook Air will weigh only 3.3 pounds and start at $1,299. A new Mac Pro desktop with the new M2 Ultra chip will be $6,999.
• Apple stock hit an all-time high ahead of the Worldwide Developers Conference as headset-hype built. But after the higher-than-expected price was announced, shares swiftly dipped and reached their lowest point of the day after the presentation.
• Industry partners for the new headset include Disney, whose CEO Bob Iger was part of the presentation and said his company’s streaming service will be available on the Vision Pro. Developers on Unity Software’s platform, a popular video-game engine, will also have access to Vision Pro tools, which vaulted company’s stock up 16 per cent.

Read: Apple unveils Vision headset in search of post-iPhone future

Also read: Apple introduces ‘world’s thinnest’ 15-inch MacBook Air