Apple confirmed on Friday that WWDC 2020 will be an online only. It will take place in June, but no more specific date had been announced at the time of this writing.
WWDC 2020 Takes New Format
Apple will reveal more details about WWDC 2020 in the coming weeks. The announcement did not specifically mention the coronavirus outbreak. However, Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, hinted that the pandemic had had some influence on the decision. He said:
We are delivering WWDC 2020 this June in an innovative way to millions of developers around the world, bringing the entire developer community together with a new experience. The current health situation has required that we create a new WWDC 2020 format that delivers a full program with an online keynote and sessions, offering a great learning experience for our entire developer community, all around the world. We will be sharing all of the details in the weeks ahead.
[There May be no WWDC in 2020 Following New COVID-19 Guidance From Santa Clara County]
“With all of the new products and technologies we’ve been working on, WWDC 2020 is going to be big,” added Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering.
He indicated that developers will still be able to get time with Apple engineers. Those sessions are one of the key attractions for WWDC attendees:
I look forward to our developers getting their hands on the new code and interacting in entirely new ways with the Apple engineers building the technologies and frameworks that will shape the future across all Apple platforms.
Furthermore, Apple announced a $1 million commitment to local San Jose organizations. It will help compensate them for the losses incurred as a result of WWDC 2020 going online.
I hope they make it an MMO like World of Warcraft. I want to pick up quests from Phil Schiller and earn the achievement “Meet Tim Cook three times!”