Next week's WWDC2024 event will generate a lot of excitement, but for many THIRD-party software creators, the developer CONFERENCE may be accompanied by an air of anxiety. 

In recent weeks, rumors have surfaced of the kind of software updates Apple is waiting on in the wings, some of which could potentially break into the features they already offer with a little help from artificial intelligence, spelling out trouble for third-party rivals.  

Here are some apps that should be worried by Apple's possible AI moves—and why.

On May 4, Google caused a little splash with Google Photos announcing that it would get AI tools on more compatible devices, including the iPhone. Most of these are free, but Magic Editor only saves you 10 times a month — if you need more, you'll need to subscribe to the 2TB Google One plan. 

However, no such AI ploy will be rolled out to the iPhone any sooner than Apple reveals its own alternatives in iOS18. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple plans to roll out its own generation AI for images. Well-connected reporter says it offers a "clean-up" feature that automatically removes unwanted objects from images, like Magic Eraser.

Obviously, that doesn't necessarily stop iPhone users from using Google Photos, but it probably means that iCloud Photos looks like a more attractive place to store images in the future and could help drive Apple One subscriptions. 

Despite the strength of Apple Music, Spotify, as an original music streaming solution, is sticking to its popular bet. Many who have a Mac, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch prefer the little green app over Apple's alternatives. 1 reason is Spotify's great playlist creation and discovery tool, but with iOS18, there's talk that Apple will leverage AI to auto-generate playlists based on past listening habits.   

Spotify should certainly rest on its laurels because Apple Music is also set to introduce a mysterious new feature called "pass-through" with smart transitions

Evernote is one of the best note-taking apps around and has a very loyal following as a result. However, the basic plan has a 60MB limit of uploads to sync between devices, making a paid account essential for all but the very casual user.

Meanwhile, Apple's Note has historically been a simple and no-frills solution that does the basics very well. But again, according to Gurman, there could be a major upgrade in iOS18. 

The generation feature is also coming here, and it's not clear if this applies to text or images, but if implemented well, it could make notes a much more attractive proposition, especially without subscription fees.

Speaking of Notes apps, its impending AI upgrade can cause problems with Otter, another subscription-based software.

If you're not familiar with Otter, Otter will automatically listen to audio recordings (audio recordings), saving you time of listening back to old recordings. It's not infallible, but it's pretty good and a real-time saver (or even a meeting in real time).

In iOS18, both notes and voice memos are rumored to have acquired AI transcription. Obviously, these kinds of automatic transcription apps live and die by accuracy, but with some tough limitations on Otter's free offering, what's built into every iPhone could be a game changer for those who spend hours of transcription on 1 day. 

For over 14 years on the ipad, Apple has not yet included a calculator app — this is strange because the iPhone had one from get-go. 

It is reportedly set to change in iPadOS18. The calculator app has come to all models that can do the upgrade, and is apparently similar to the full iPhone version with round buttons.

This is bad news for the likes of pcalc, Calculator84 and Calzy that could be filling the gap in the absence of first-party software.

To be clear, I'm not saying that Apple's impending software upgrade will definitely make these apps redundant. Not only do we not know how good Apple's implementation of these virtual features is, but some of these apps have large, loyal supporters who can't easily switch between them.

What we are saying is that Apple has a huge advantage in first-party apps, to install on all iPhones and iPads that are sold, and third-party developers can integrate the experience with the operating system in ways that simply can not. You can do it.That's why app makers working in the same field as Apple need to be wary of complacency.

Next week we'll look at how these app makers are being threatened. If you want to see everything unfold in real time, here's how to watch WWDC2024.