Yesterday and Today
Reflecting on seven years of Today at Apple.
That computers could be used to educate bore me as a child. Here were these wonderful machines full of fun and games, and you want me to learn? Soon, I came around to the idea. Technology inspired my lifelong love of learning. That’s why I’ve always had a deep appreciation for Today at Apple.
Seven years ago this week, Today at Apple launched worldwide at all Apple Stores. Like in my own life, Apple has valued education since the early days. The Apple II was the first classroom computer. The first Apple Stores had spaces designed for kids to discover technology. And for the first 16 years of Apple Retail, Apple hosted Workshops to teach people that anyone could use a computer. Today at Apple promised to be something even greater.
When the program was announced, Angela Ahrendts said, “We’re creating a modern-day town square, where everyone is welcome in a space where the best of Apple comes together to connect with one another, discover a new passion, or take their skill to the next level.”
Today at Apple wasn’t just a rebranding of Workshops, it was a new approach to education in stores. Workshops were about the software: here’s how to use iPhoto. Today at Apple sessions were about creativity: here’s how to take great photos. Previous live events invited celebrities to speak; new exclusive sessions invited local artists.
It wasn’t enough to develop new programming and train a global group of Creative Pros to teach their communities. The stores had to feel right, too. Luckily, the launch of Today at Apple coincided with an all-new store design focused on human connection.
Around this time, I began paying close attention to Apple Stores. I could tell there was something special happening. It was those old beige PCs that sparked my love of learning as a child, but it was Today at Apple that reignited it during a creative slump in my early 20s.
Without a doubt, Today at Apple’s high-water mark came just before the pandemic. In June 2019, Apple and the New Museum launched [AR]T Walks — collaborative augmented reality experiences — at top stores throughout the world. With an iPhone and a special app developed just for the session, Creative Pros would guide groups through the city as it sprang to life with augmented reality art. The experience was phenomenal, even with the relatively rudimentary AR tech of the time.
Recounting that moment today sounds like impossible folklore. Apple hosted collaborative AR sessions in Central Park in 2019? And then commissioned a free documentary profiling the artists? Sure, and I bet the keynotes used to be presented live from Steve Jobs Theater.
![Three screenshots capturing during a Today at Apple [AR]T Walk around Central Park. The screenshots show augmented reality art overlaid on the environment.](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc96ffe76-dade-4263-b9f8-c472755e3418.heic "Three screenshots capturing during a Today at Apple [AR]T Walk around Central Park. The screenshots show augmented reality art overlaid on the environment.")
During the most fearful days of 2020, Today at Apple (at Home) (archive link) was a candle in the dark. When time ground to a halt, a creative break from reality helped the minutes tick by.
For a while, it seemed like sessions would permanently adopt a hybrid format: some online, some in-store. The “New World” collaborations with It’s Nice That in 2021 and 2022 proved that virtual events could be much more than an exchange of “you’re on mute.”
In the seven years since Today at Apple launched, our relationships with technology have changed. The wonder and promise of the future is too often clouded by skepticism and pessimism. New technology must now first prove it’s not evil before convincing us that it’s good. A bit of critical thinking is essential. Too much can kill curiosity.
Today at Apple now operates within the confines of this tense climate. Today’s unvarnished session calendar looks more like it did a decade ago. They’re even called Workshops again. It’s hard to speak to the importance of creativity when every creative industry is in the midst of an existential crisis.
Though it seems counterintuitive, I think the growing cultural distrust of technology represents a massive opportunity to for platforms like Today at Apple to flourish, not decline. Computers should feel empowering, not imposing. Empowerment follows education.
Featured image
Apple Marina Bay Sands
Photo via @minayd.