Siri will be the highlight of Apple Developer Conference: it may open the interface and land on Mac

Apple's revenue fell in the first quarter for the first time in 13 years, and the company faces questions about whether it has passed its peak at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco on Monday.

Siri, Apple's digital assistant, is expected to be a major focus at the week-long WWDC.

When Siri was first introduced in 2011, Apple said it represented the future of how people would find information and complete tasks, by allowing users to simply talk to their devices instead of typing or clicking. However, Siri never really achieved that goal, and other companies have begun to dabble in this space.

Google parent Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft have all launched digital voice assistants that rely on artificial intelligence technology, which allows computers to understand semantics and content and make decisions like human brains, rather than rigidly executing instructions according to pre-programmed programs.

Sources said that at this conference, Apple will announce that Siri will be open to external developers. In the future, iPhone users can ask Siri to call a taxi through Uber, or check whether a flight has available tickets through the flight app. The Information website reported earlier that Apple plans to release Siri's software development kit (SDK) at this WWDC.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment on upcoming product releases.

It is particularly important for Apple to connect Siri to other applications. Amazon's voice assistant Alex has already achieved this function. Through Alexa, users can order pizza, check credit card bills, and find out TV schedules. How to make Siri a more popular voice assistant is a problem that Apple needs to solve. If users control devices more by voice, then Apple needs to make Siri more competitive and more useful, otherwise it may lose the hardware market.

In the past, Apple usually released new services and device software upgrades at WWDC. Compared with new product releases, WWDC usually focuses more on technology and downplays products. At this event, Apple's release of a new programming language can cause more cheers than inviting rappers to perform on stage. Apple released a new programming language at WWDC in 2014, and invited Drake to perform on stage last year to launch a streaming music service.

The developer conference remains key to understanding Apple's long-term strategy. At this year's event, Apple is expected to release upgrades to its entire software product line. Apple currently has four operating systems, one for iPhone/iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch and Mac computers.

All of these systems are upgraded annually with new features, and Siri is expected to come to Mac computers this year, the sources said.

Prior to the conference, Apple announced last week that it would adjust its app policy in the App Store to appease developers’ dissatisfaction. Apple will allow more apps to charge users through service subscriptions. For long-term subscription users, Apple will increase the revenue share ratio received by developers.

Other expected news included a redesign of the streaming music service. When it was launched a year ago, Apple Music was criticized for its confusing user interface. In April, Apple said that Apple Music had attracted 13 million subscribers. Apple Music charges $9.99 per month for individual users and $14.99 per month for family users.

Apple's stock price has fallen 23% over the past year, partly due to the decline in iPhone sales, and analysts do not expect the news released by Apple at WWDC to quickly reverse the downward trend in the stock price.

Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray, said WWDC was just an appetizer for the product launches this fall, when Apple is expected to unveil new iPhones and other new products.

Patrick Moorhead, an analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, said that compared with other companies' developer conferences, Apple's WWDC may not be so forward-looking. Apple usually does not reveal relevant information about new products before they are ready.

"It's not in line with Apple's brand to reveal it in advance," said Morehead. "Apple doesn't experiment on its customers. Apple needs to show finished products, not plans."

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.