WWDC 2023: How to attend Apple’s on-site developer conference

Apple has decided to hold its World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) primarily online again this year. There will only be one day to visit Apple Park in Cupertino: June 5th. Then a so-called special event is planned. The process will be the same as at WWDC 2022 in Corona times: A selected group of visitors will watch the (recorded) keynote with the new products and new operating systems and can meet with other developers and Apple employees before and after. And once again it’s hard to get tickets.

Process: Like playing the lottery

The group has set up its own website for this purpose, which you can use to apply. This phase runs until April 4th. In order to be able to send a “Request to attend” at all, several requirements must be met. You must either be a member of Apple’s paid developer program, have attended the Apple Entrepreneur Camp, have won the Swift Student Challenge between 2020 and 2022, or be a current member of the Apple Developer Enterprise Program. There are also tickets for participants in this year’s Swift Student Challenge, for which there should be a separate contingent.

“Invitations will be randomly assigned and non-transferable. You will be notified of your status by April 5 at 6:00 p.m. EST,” Apple writes succinctly. What “random principle” means is unclear. After all, the tickets are free, it used to cost a good 1600 US dollars to attend WWDC – albeit with many events that are now all online (and free). Apple has not yet revealed how many developers are actually allowed to come to the special event. Like last year, media representatives from all over the world are likely to be there.

No normalization after Corona

It is quite surprising that even after the pandemic, Apple does not completely normalize WWDC, as numerous other events have done. Since 2020, all events with new products from the group are only recordings, which simplifies their production. Although journalists are also invited here, they only watch a video – followed by a hands-on session with the products in the anteroom of the Steve Jobs Theater.

Without WWDC on site, many developers lack personal exchange – although there was always the problem that the demand was significantly higher than the number of cards. Only Apple knows whether the developer conference will ever become a face-to-face event again.

(bsc)