Apple’s annual WWDC event this year was… fine; but if you were expecting a game-changing reveal like 2023’s Vision Pro or the debut of Apple Intelligence, you were probably left underwhelmed.

Instead of splashy hardware or surprise features, Apple focused on something more subtle but still significant: a new design overhaul that’s coming to all of its major devices later this year – from iPhones and Macs to iPads and even Vision Pro headsets. They’re calling it Liquid Glass.

It’s Apple’s biggest design refresh since iOS 7 back in 2013. So what to expect – think – glossy, translucent lock screens, pill-shaped buttons that glide along glass-like rails, and smoother animations; even answering a call feels like you’re interacting with a piece of futuristic hardware.

But Wall Street wasn’t exactly impressed. Apple’s stock dipped 1.2% as investors continued to ask the same question: Where is Apple’s bold move in AI?

Analysts weren’t feeling it either. “Most of the AI features were incremental and already available through other apps,” UBS’s David Vogt wrote, basically saying Apple didn’t break new ground.

Last year’s big AI play – Apple Intelligence and a “smarter, more personal Siri” was supposed to be the company’s answer to ChatGPT; but Apple quietly hit pause on that earlier this year, pulled some ads, and, as of WWDC, still did not offer a concrete timeline.

Apple’s SVP of Software, Craig Federighi, addressed the delay with a familiar line: “This work needed more time to meet our high quality bar.” He now says the rollout is coming “over the next year.”

So What’s Up with Liquid Glass?
Tim Cook called the new software updates “delightful.” It’s all about transparency –  literally. The new look features see-through sliders, pill buttons, and softer curves on windows and menus, moving away from rigid boxy frames. Basically, Apple wants your device to feel more alive and fluid.

The design inspiration comes from VisionOS – the interface Apple developed for the Vision Pro headset. Apple says now that its chips (hello, Apple Silicon) are powerful enough, it can finally bring these more advanced visual layers to all devices.

“This kind of experience was just a dream before,” said Federighi in a pre-recorded segment.

Online reactions were, well, mixed. Some fans loved the sleek new vibe while others could not help but compare it to Windows Vista, not exactly a compliment.

A Little AI, But Not Much Wow
While Siri did not get the major upgrade some were hoping for, Apple did sprinkle in a few new AI features.

ChatGPT Integration: Apple’s leaning more into OpenAI’s toolkit. Now, when you take a screenshot, you can instantly send it to ChatGPT to summarize any text or help you figure out what’s on-screen.

On-Device Translation: One of the more useful updates – during a phone call between two people who speak different languages, the iPhone can now translate the conversation in real time and use an AI voice to speak in the other person’s language.

The best part is – it all happens on-device. No need for a server connection.

iOS 26, Apple’s Giving Its Software a New Identity
Buried beneath the flashy animations and the Liquid Glass gloss at WWDC was a quieter but surprisingly meaningful change, Apple’s switching up how it names its software.

For years, since the OG iPhone in 2007, Apple’s been rolling out annual updates like clockwork: iOS 7, iOS 12, iOS 18… and so on. These version numbers gave users a sense of progress and maybe even bragging rights over having the “latest” OS. As of now, about 82% of recent iPhones are already running iOS 18.

But Apple is done with that style of naming; starting this year, it’s going full calendar mode. Come September, you won’t be downloading iOS 19, you will be getting iOS 26, named for the year it will be mainstream on your devices.

Same goes for the rest of the lineup: iPadOS 26, WatchOS 26, tvOS 26, and even VisionOS 26.

Sure, it’s just a number but it simplifies things — no more confusion about which OS version matches which product year. It also subtly pressures Apple to deliver a fresh update every year after all, if it’s 2027 and you’re still on “26,” it’s going to be pretty obvious your software’s out of date.

AI Takes a Backseat
WWDC 2025 was supposed to be Apple’s big moment to flex its AI muscles but instead, it felt more like a slow jog than a sprint.

Yes, Apple showed off Apple Intelligence – its own privacy-first, on-device AI ecosystem that now runs across iPhones, iPads, Macs, and the Vision Pro. But while the system is broad in scope, it’s light on the kind of headline-grabbing innovation we’re seeing from competitors like Google or Microsoft.

And that’s the problem; So now, the big question floating around tech circles is: Is Apple playing the long game… or just getting left behind?

When it comes to AI, Apple is choosing restraint over razzle-dazzle. At its 2025 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), the company made it known – it isn’t chasing the AI hype train at least not in the same way its Big Tech peers are.

Instead, Apple’s core message is simple and consistent: “intelligence without surveillance.” Most of the new AI features it showcased – from enhanced Spotlight searches to call screening and on-device language translation – all run locally. Apple promises none of your personal data will be sent to the cloud, harvested, or used to train models. In a world where privacy scandals routinely make headlines, this positioning sounds like a breath of fresh air.

And yet, that same breath feels a little… shallow.

The Limits of Privacy-First AI
There’s no denying the trade-offs that come with Apple’s approach. Running AI on-device means keeping models small and lightweight – a practical necessity due to hardware constraints. But this also limits the depth, flexibility, and real-time smarts that define cloud-based AI systems. For consumers, this may not always be a dealbreaker but for enterprise users? It’s a significant handicap.

Businesses working with legal tech, large-scale customer support, or collaborative tools need systems that understand nuanced contexts, allow fine-tuning, and pull in vast amounts of data across environments. That kind of sophistication simply can’t live on a chip inside your iPhone; it needs the computing muscle of the cloud.

To be fair, Apple isn’t ignoring developers entirely. The newly introduced Foundation Models Framework is a move toward opening up its AI tools for third-party developers. But as The Wall Street Journal noted, developers working on “serious” AI applications may find the Apple stack underwhelming.

Drifting Off-Course in the Broader AI Economy
As AI innovation heats up, Apple’s refusal to fully engage with the cloud-based AI revolution puts it in an awkward position. The rest of the tech world –  Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and a growing cast of nimble startups – are building AI ecosystems that are modular, multi-modal, customizable, and collaborative. Apple, meanwhile, is doubling down on its traditional strengths: sleek hardware, privacy, and vertical integration.

But there’s a risk here. If Apple doesn’t evolve beyond its hardware-first strategy, it could find itself playing the same role it always has – a premium phone and OS platform – while the real AI innovation happens in third-party apps and services.

The Long Game Isn’t Paying Off — At Least Not Yet
Karen Webster, CEO of PYMNTS, captured the mood perfectly in mid-2023. “Cupertino’s stance on privacy and user data, and its closed ecosystem, may have Apple winning the hearts and minds of consumers,” she wrote, “but losing the generative AI war.”

Despite holding 58% of the U.S. smartphone market, Apple could still be left out in the cold if it becomes just the vessel for everyone else’s GPT-powered apps. A pretty, secure iPhone might not be enough if users are spending all their time inside tools powered by OpenAI, Google Gemini, or Anthropic’s Claude.

Apple’s counter to these concerns? A fresh coat of paint.

Its new Liquid Glass interface across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS is a nod to its design chops – translucent, layered, futuristic. It hints at the upcoming “Glasswing” iPhone, reportedly slated for 2027. But while it looks cool, it’s hard to ignore the elephant in the room: design isn’t a substitute for breakthrough AI.

Beyond AI; Apple’s Other Headaches Are Mounting
AI isn’t the only storm Apple is navigating. The company is also dealing with a cocktail of regulatory, trade, and supply chain headaches.

First, there’s increased scrutiny over App Store fees and Apple’s sweet deal with Google, which pays handsomely to remain the default search engine. That arrangement is now under the legal microscope.

Then there are tariffs and political pressure, especially from President Donald Trump, who recently voiced opposition to Apple’s manufacturing shift to India. “I don’t want you building in India,” Trump reportedly told CEO Tim Cook, a statement that caused some jitters in both Cupertino and New Delhi.

Apple’s India Pivot
Despite the noise, Apple’s pivot to India is very real and very big.

Foxconn (Apple’s key manufacturing partner) just announced an additional $1.5 billion investment in its India operations. Reports of a massive new campus for 30,000 employees, alongside Tata Electronics’ assembly of the iPhone 16 in South India, signal just how entrenched Apple’s India play has become.

And it’s working –  the value of Apple’s products made in India has jumped 60% in the last year to $22 billion, with over $17 billion exported. In fact, thanks largely to Apple, India now earns more from electronics exports than pharmaceuticals, a stunning reversal for a country long dominated by generics.

But it’s not all smooth sailing. Duplicating Apple’s vast Chinese supply chain in India is a monumental task, and Trump’s political grandstanding is just one of many hurdles. There’s also the geopolitical backdrop –  including India’s fraught relationship with China, which has required careful diplomatic gymnastics to keep production lines humming.

India’s Apple Ambitions Hit a Chinese Wall
Still, that experience (of building an industrial base from scratch) should have served as a timely reminder to New Delhi: building a globally competitive electronics manufacturing ecosystem isn’t just about wooing companies with tax breaks and land parcels.

It requires the harmonious coordination of three critical parameters –  the companies themselves, the destination markets that will consume these products, and the source geographies where talent, know-how, and suppliers currently reside.

So far, Apple and its manufacturing partner Foxconn seem to be on board. Trump and his unpredictable tariff threats may be diplomatically maneuverable. But what about China?

A pointed observation from former Financial Times journalist Patrick McGee, in his recent book, makes it clear: Apple’s manufacturing might in China didn’t happen in isolation. It was the result of a carefully cultivated ecosystem of financiers, engineers, component suppliers, and local governments – many of whom were from the U.S. itself. American capital helped build China’s factories, and American engineers helped train Chinese workers. In a sense, this was history repeating itself – just as 18th-century Britain unknowingly taught its industrial playbook to the U.S., today’s superpowers build tomorrow’s competitors.

But here’s the problem: ecosystems don’t pack up and move just because a few CEOs or politicians want them to. They move when it’s profitable, feasible, and politically possible. And right now, China seems intent on throwing a wrench into the works.

Beijing’s Silent Pushback – The Human Supply Chain Gets Stuck
Even as Apple’s component suppliers express willingness to set up shop in India, enticed by lower labor costs and generous incentives, many are finding themselves blocked by an invisible wall.

Reports suggest that skilled Chinese engineers, who were expected to move temporarily to India and Southeast Asia to supervise new production lines, are being denied exit permissions by Beijing. No formal decree, no explicit statement but a growing number of key personnel have simply found themselves unable to travel.

That’s no small thing. These aren’t just middle managers these are the domain experts who hold the institutional knowledge to run and ramp up high-precision manufacturing. Without them, duplicating China’s hyper-efficient supply chain in Tamil Nadu or Karnataka becomes an uphill battle.

In effect, Apple and India have been trying to court Trump trying to get him to accept the idea that iPhones bound for U.S. consumers will soon be made in India. But now, it appears they may need to court Xi Jinping too.

The Shadow War for Supply Chain Supremacy
Objectively, India’s mobile phone manufacturing base, even with Apple’s heavy involvement, is not yet close to rivaling China’s dominance. China remains the indispensable country when it comes to scale, speed, supplier depth, and sheer output. Apple knows it. So do Samsung, Tesla, and virtually every electronics major.

But here’s what’s changed: Beijing now sees India’s ascent as a direct threat. What was once a backup plan or a hedge is now viewed as a rival strategic project. And just like the U.S. has tried to “de-risk” its reliance on Chinese tech, China seems keen to “de-risk” Apple’s ability to build alternatives elsewhere. A few well-placed restrictions, some red tape here, a travel block there and suddenly, the world’s most valuable company finds itself entangled in a new geopolitical tug-of-war.

Trump may shout, but Xi quietly slows things down.

The Last Bit – Playing Safe May No Longer Be Safe

Apple’s slow, deliberate approach to AI may win applause for its ethics and user-centricity. But in an industry defined by speed, scale, and software supremacy, it risks getting outpaced.

It still builds the best hardware in the game, no doubt. Its privacy-first stance is refreshing. Its design is still miles ahead of rivals. But the real question is whether that’s enough in an AI-first world, one where intelligence, adaptability, and cloud muscle may matter more than ever.

In the end, Apple’s conservative AI gambit might not just be a missed opportunity, it could become a strategic liability.

The Paradox of Apple’s India Bet

Apple’s India pivot has been the only unqualified industrial success story of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” campaign. From zero to $22 billion in manufacturing output in a few years, with $17 billion in exports, this is the kind of hockey-stick growth most countries only dream of. It’s even helped electronics overtake pharma as India’s top export earner, a symbolic shift in a country long known for generic drugs, not gadgets.

But even this rare win is fragile, conditional, and constantly being negotiated.

It hinges not just on New Delhi’s policies or Apple’s strategy, but also on how geopolitics unfolds between Washington, Beijing, and New Delhi. And that’s a chessboard with too many moving pieces.

Apple may design in California, assemble in India, and sell in the U.S. but the heart of its manufacturing capability still beats in China. And unless Apple, India, and their partners can untangle this web or get Beijing to loosen its grip the vision of India as a global electronics powerhouse could remain just that: a vision.