In an interview with The Australian, Greg “Joz” Jozwiak, Apple’s VP of iOS, iPad, and iPhone Product Marketing, provide some insights into Apple’s new ARKit technology that will be rolling out in iOS 10, describing the rapid uptake by iOS developers has been “unbelievable,” and describing some of the applications that he’s already seen rolling out for the new technology: “They’ve built everything from virtual tape measures (to) ballerinas made out of wood dancing on floors. It’s absolutely incredible what people are doing in so little time.”
Jozwiak described some of the tangible benefits of how ARKit could be used in future apps, providing examples such as rolling out a virtual tape measure that could actually be used to work out distance between two points, as determined by the iPhone’s camera, as well as noting IKEA’s plans to use ARKit for virtual furniture placement in a user’s own home.
Jozwiak emphasized that Apple is not currently talking about any plans to build AR devices — such as glasses or a headset — but instead is focusing on promoting the use of the technology on the iPhone and iPad. He expects AR applications to evolve in the commercial space as well for shopping, education, training and services.
During the interview, Jozwiak also discussed HomeKit, Apple’s coming HomePod speakers, and new male and female voices for Siri. In discussing Apple’s work on machine learning, he also revealed that Apple was working in that direction even as far back as the original 2007 iPhone, where the keyboard would “learn” how a user typed to modify the hit zones of each letter on the keyboard, and that Apple is currently using it to improve the autocorrect features of typing, and even “atrocious handwriting” made with the Apple Pencil.
