On That Workflow Acquistion

I first heard about it on Slack and then on Macstories.1 Apple acquired the venerable Workflow app for iOS. From Apple’s statement to Techcrunch:

“The Workflow app was selected for an Apple Design Award in 2015 because of its outstanding use of iOS accessibility features, in particular an outstanding implementation for VoiceOver with clearly labeled items, thoughtful hints, and drag/drop announcements, making the app usable and quickly accessible to those who are blind or low-vision.”

That doesn’t sound like a company that’s agressively pursuing automation on iOS. Accesibility is still a wonderful, and arguably much more important, goal for Apple, but I don’t think it’s a positive move for the people that love the app. Unlike Panazarino, I think this is bad news for anyone that relies on Workflow to make iOS useful. If all your eggs are in that one basket then you better hurry up and build a new basket. I’d love to be wrong on this front, but I don’t think automation is a priority for Apple or for iOS. The URL support isn’t just languishing on iOS, Apple has actively killed access to some feautures in launcher apps. But, who knows. Maybe these three new hires will completely change the Apple culture where Sal couldn’t.[^sarcasm]

  1. By way of Techcrunch ↩︎