Qunar Developers' Takeaways from WWDC 2018: ARKit 2.0, Swift, Core ML, Siri Shortcuts, and watchOS 5

On June 4 2018, Qunar sent two developers, Jiang Zhuo and Zhang Zitian, to Apple’s WWDC 2018 in San Jose. They shared observations on the conference’s announcements, focusing on software updates rather than hardware.

Key releases included macOS 10.14, iOS 12, watchOS 5, tvOS 12, ARKit 2.0, and several machine‑learning (Core ML, Create ML) and Siri Shortcut enhancements. The keynote emphasized user‑experience and performance, with notable features such as Memoji, group FaceTime for up to 32 participants, Dark Mode, and privacy improvements.

Both developers highlighted their personal interests: ARKit, Swift, Core ML, and Siri Shortcuts. They noted that ARKit 2.0 adds map saving/loading, environment texturing, and improved image tracking, enabling multi‑user shared AR experiences and more realistic object rendering.

Specific ARKit details discussed included:

Saving and loading maps for world‑tracking, allowing multi‑user interaction.

Environment texturing that blends virtual objects with real‑world lighting.

Enhanced image tracking that supports moving 2D images at 60 fps and simultaneous tracking of multiple images.

They also mentioned the new USDZ file format, a collaboration between Apple and Adobe that lets creators use familiar Adobe tools to produce AR content, positioning iPhone as a massive AR platform.

Regarding watchOS, the updates focus on fitness and health, with new Siri Shortcut integration, one‑to‑one FaceTime, and support for rich‑text HTML rendering on the watch.

Siri Shortcut was described as a way to expose frequently used app actions via voice, built on Core Spotlight UserActivity and SiriKit Intents APIs. The developers suggested practical use cases such as ordering food, booking rides, or checking flight information, while noting limited Chinese language support.

Overall, the Qunar team sees ARKit 2.0 as a promising avenue for tourism‑related applications—such as interactive guide maps on tickets or hotel room safety overlays—and encourages developers to explore the ARKit 2.0 session 605 (Inside SwiftShot: Creating an AR Game) for implementation ideas.