My one WWDC 2017 prediction:
People will be talking, afterward, about the number of women and minorities up on stage during the Keynote.
This is highlighted by the (unconfirmed?) report that the breakout woman of color from last year’s WWDC Keynote, Bozoma Saint John, is leaving Apple soon.
From what I have read and experienced, Apple, like many tech companies, is struggling to increase its diversity in any substantial way. Rows and rows of white dudes (such as myself, when I was there) working on Apple’s hardware and software.
The executive team you see at the Keynote is important, but I don’t see it changing anytime soon. So I’m looking at the rest of the sessions.
The people who give the regular talks at WWDC are the people who work on the thing, or their immediate managers, who usually contribute technically was well.
So when I’ve seen more women up on stage for those talks in the last couple years, I’ve been pretty happy with it. They aren’t tokens. Apple really is employing more women to work on their stuff.
So that’s what I’ll be looking for as I watch the sessions (remotely) this year: more women and minorities throughout.
Weaponized Fluff 