With all the changes to watchOS at WWDC 2024, you’d be forgiven for thinking the new APIs slipped under the radar.
But they didn’t here at Wareable.
In fact, it was immediately clear that Apple’s expansion of APIs across watchOS 11 would lead to a more contextual and personal experience for Apple Watch users.
APIs are software interfaces that enable third-party developers to integrate their apps deeper into the Apple Watch. Instead of apps being experiences that live on – and separate from – the watch, APIs enable apps to embed seamlessly.
Read more: 11 new Apple Watch features coming in watchOS 11
In watchOS 10, the new Workout API enabled developers to integrate their own workout apps into the Apple Watch interface. That meant apps such as Training Peaks could add custom workouts to the Apple Watch, and have it appear as if they live natively within the Workout app.
In watchOS 11, there are brand new APIs for the Double Tap gesture, SmartStack widgets, and even State of Mind logging.
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Why is that important? It means that third-party developers will affect the experience of the Apple Watch more than ever before.
We spoke to Eric Charles, Senior Manager of watchOS Product Marketing, and Lori Hylan-Cho, Senior Engineering Manager for watchOS to find out more.
A more personal, contextual Apple Watch
Part of watchOS 11 was an expanded SmartStack – Apple’s name for the Rolodex of widgets that appear when you scroll the Digital Crown, or start Double Tapping.
They are designed to add glanceability to the Apple Watch and make the data within apps more presentable. Unlike complications, SmartStack works no matter the watch face you choose – and the new SmartStack APIs will dramatically change how users interact with it.
Developers can access new layouts for SmartStack widgets with up to three spots that users can tap to perform tasks such as selecting workouts or playing music.
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There are also relevancy cues, which help Apple determine when to put the widget on the top of the stack. Examples of relevancy cues could include putting your AirPods in your ears, putting on your watch as part of your morning routine, or even approaching your bus stop or coffee spot.
We asked if Hylan-Cho thought it would change the experience of the Apple Watch for the better.
“I definitely believe that. I’m already living with this. And seeing my door lock widget come up as I approach my door, so I can unlock it, is incredible.”
Hylan-Cho also told Wareable that it’s up to developers to decide when their app might be most useful for users, thus enabling Apple to show it in the right context.
“It’s up to the developer to think about when their widget might be most relevant,” she said.
“If you’ve got a widget that shows your sleep data, you might want to see that when you wake up in the morning. Or when I leave the house every morning, or when I’m approaching the bus stop, and I want to know when the next bus is going to be. The developer provides those cues and then the SmartStack has logic that it’s using to figure it out.”
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Tapping out
Likewise, the Double Tap API also brings the gesture across third-party apps.
The API means that the Double Tap will automatically work as the primary function within third-party apps without developers having to take any action. Previously it only worked within Apple apps.
But developers can also assign the gesture to any button or feature within the app.
It’s already been rolled out across several apps, including the Spout Baby tracker, enabling parents to start sleep timers with a double tap and avoid waking the baby.
“What I’m excited about is developers can assign it to any primary action within their app. We don’t know what developers are going to do with it,” said Charles.
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But a big benefit of the increased ubiquity of both the Double Tap gesture and SmartStack is that it will expose more people to it.
“It’s one of those features that you may not think of right away, but it’s that moment where you’ve got a coffee in one hand and maybe you’re juggling a Macbook under your arm. And then, all of a sudden, you remember that you have access to this gesture that’s going to allow you to answer that phone call,” he said.
One thing we have found after living with the Double Tap feature over the last year is that while the technology and experience are great, it didn’t stay front of mind over the weeks and months of living with the Apple Watch.
Charles agreed that having more apps using the utility of Double Tap (and SmartStack) will help users interact with the feature more, and keep it front of mind for those moments of delight.
“I think that [the Double Tap API] will really increase the awareness of the gesture and the utility of it,” he said.
Workout and State of Mind API
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The Workout API, introduced last year (and you can read our previous chat with Eric Charles here), gets some additions in watchOS 11 – with apps now able to write guided swimming workouts. Fields are also customizable, meaning intervals can be named for extra guidance on the Watch.
But an all-new State of Mind API is also added to the mix. It enables app developers to prompt users to log their state of mind – using the same mechanism enabled through the Apple Mindfulness app – during various experiences.
It has the power to add to feedback such as workouts, yoga, or even live events. If implemented thoughtfully, it could add a previously untapped element of mindfulness and mental health awareness to more experiences.
But because developers can use the APIs to read the output of State of Mind logging, as well as simply offer a prompt for inputs, it could elevate this mental health data in new ways.
“The new State of Mind API state of mind was created as a methodology for reflecting on one’s emotional state, and it can be used in a wide variety of applications and it’s not restricted to mental well-being apps,” said Charles.
“It gives developers another access point to understand how their content is being received. And not only can developers integrate these experiences into their apps, but they can read data points such as state of mind.”
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And that extends to new metrics, such as the effort levels in the new Training Load app.
“If a developer is running HealthKit workout builder on Watch, then any workout done in their app, if it associates with those same workout types on Watch, will automatically get an effort rating as well,” explained Charles.
“They can incorporate into their app, and they can create their effort views as well. So they have a number of different ways of utilizing the APIs to make this work,” said Charles.
Wareable says
While big-name features such as the Vitals app, Training Readiness, and AI Photos watch faces stole the headlines, it feels like watchOS 11’s new APIs will change the experience more fundamentally.
SmartStack was a big change in how the Apple Watch presented data to wearers. It made it more glanceable, and, in many ways, it shifted watchOS to be more like competitors.
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But the changes in watchOS 11 – paired with the API for third parties – take it further, adding context and logic in a way we’ve not seen before.
And it doesn’t take a crystal ball to see how Apple Intelligence feeds into this in the future.
Likewise, an expansion of the Double Tap API and even more additions to workouts weave a thread of Apple’s latest and most advanced features through the whole watch OS experience.
But it might be evolutionary, not revolutionary. It’s taken a year to see a handful of experiences from the Workout API last year – and we hope that developers will pick up and run with these new SmartStack and Double Tap integrations.
