Top 8 iOS App Development Trends to Watch Out for in 2024

Here’s a list of main iOS trends in 2024 we’ve considered:

1. Machine learning and artificial intelligence
2. Augmented reality
3. Internet of Things
4. Wearables
5. Cloud integration
6. Chatbots
7. iBeacon
8. Security

Regardless of the industry, many businesses try to apply ML and AI technologies to their iOS applications. Of course, Artificial Intelligence isn’t the phenomenon of 2024, but it brings a lot of positive changes.

For example, Facebook shows relevant content, based on the users’ preferences. AI analyzes customers’ behavior and interactions (likes, comments, and more) and offer similar content.

According to the latest research by International Data Corporation, the AI technology will get the more than $47 billion in revenue by 2021.

Let’s consider some use cases of Artificial Intelligence.

At the WWDC 2019, Apple introduced the latest version of the Machine Learning framework – Core ML 3. This tool enables various opportunities like computer vision, speech recognition, and so on.

Augmented and Virtual Reality are among the next iOS app trends in 2024. In the last couple of years, we’ve experienced an obsession with AR games like Pokémon Go and Dino Trek.

There are already a lot of apps like IKEA that use this technology to provide a better consumer experience. In 2024, AR applications become mainstream thanks to their abilities in marketing, healthcare, and other industries.

For example, well-known social media apps such as Instagram and Snapchat have already been integrating Augmented Reality. They offer users a bunch of cool stickers and animated masks.

Apple offers various tools to create Augmented Reality experiences:

• ARKit 3. This technology moved forward and enables showing content in front of or behind people, following up to three faces at a time.
• Reality Composer. It allows developing animations and interactions on iOS to improve application’s content.
• RealityKit framework. Using data provided by ARKit, this framework lets integrate virtual items into the real world.

Let me give you one example of how great AR is. We’ve created a computer vision (and half-AR) app at Cleveroad that tracks and changes the color of objects. Our DetectionApp uses the OpenCV library and is written on Swift.

The Internet of Things technology brings a lot of changes to routine tasks. There is no doubt that IoT is one of the most significant iOS development trends.

IoT allows connecting various devices and transferring the information. Statista claims that the IoT market’s size will reach $1.6 trillion by 2025. Internet connectivity becomes a new standard thanks to a great number of smart devices.

Industries like logistics, agriculture, and healthcare can benefit from IoT integration to their iOS applications. For example, iOS health applications can assist healthcare providers with checking patients’ condition at home and bring the data to the doctor.

For example, Triton Sponge helps determine how much blood a patient has lost. It uses various image processing algorithms to calculate the amount of blood.

Internet of Things has brought one more iOS app development trend — wearables. iOS applications powered by IoT tend to connect fitness trackers and smartwatches to smartphones. Their main task is collecting health data.

The stats are amazing: by the end of 2021, the market of wearable software expected to reach approximately $62 billion.

There are a lot of wearable devices on the market like fitness trackers, smartwatches, smart jewelry, and more. Having similar functions, they may be completely different in design.

There are several most common features for wearables:

Considering the future of iOS app development, it’s quite profitable to create applications for industries such as fitness and healthcare. Wearable devices are gaining their popularity due to their convenience. For example, such messengers as Telegram and Slack have versions for Apple Watch that allows receiving and sending messages.

One more iOS app development trend for 2024 is a cloud technology that brings a lot of opportunities to the iOS app development. It assists with organizing and storing a large amount of information.

Cloud-based iOS apps run on the cloud and increase the effectiveness and productivity of applications. Such a solution is beneficial for both — developers and users. This tool helps mobile apps store a large amount of data and manage complex tasks. As for iOS engineers, they can use cloud platform for the development, making it quicker and simpler.

Cloud technology has several more advantages:

• Scalability. Any iOS app requires constant upgrades and updates to follow all the users’ requirements and expectations. Cloud solution offers higher scalability level.
• Cost reduction. One more vital benefit of cloud technology is cost savings.
• Security.

Such giants as Dropbox and AWS has already offered an opportunity to run an application on the cloud.

This powerful technology from Apple is getting more and more popular in marketing. So it’s another iOS app development trend for 2024.

But what is iBeacon itself?

Beacon stands for wireless transmitters that send signals using Bluetooth technology. Having established the connection, a push notification with set message appears on the user’s iPhone.

Let’s consider an example. The potential buyers are passing by the clothing store. And they don’t pay attention to the banners or ads. As soon as customers pass by the shop, sensors connect to the smartphone and send a notification.

This iOS app development trend can change the retail industry and boost sales. Let’s consider an example. The popular US department store Macy’s tend to use iBeacon technology. The customers get notifications about exciting deals and goods that may be interested in.

More than half of the customers want to have more do-it-yourself services. So, chatbots fit this mission perfectly.

For example, Starbucks has released an application called My Starbucks Barista. Users can tell the bot what kind of coffee they want, coffeeshop location, and other order details. After that, the customers just need to visit the chosen Starbucks and pick up their cup of coffee.

Enterprises like Amazon and Facebook use chatbots to give their clients fast and precise answers. This technology can even replace customer support for various industries. And, what’s significant, chatbots work 24/7. Customers don’t need to wait for an answer. As for the companies, their revenue grows since users get instant responses and make decisions to buy faster.

Last but not least trend in iOS app development for 2021 is security. Apple has already created a great security system. Due to a lot of cybercrimes, personal data protection is not only a trend but a vital improvement. These days, customers tend to pay via applications, so there are a lot of personal data to protect.

iOS app developers pay a lot of attention to this matter. After the release of iOS 13, there are more opportunities to secure information.

Developers can integrate AppTransportSecurity (ATS) into their applications to offer a higher security level. This powerful tool increases the privacy and data integrity of connections between iOS applications and web services.

Mobile apps are vital for any digitalization-focused company.

Here are some of the reasons why follow the latest trends in iOS development:

As you can see, there are a lot of iOS app development trends that can bring significant changes to the industry. iOS developers need to use more advanced technologies to create a more exciting and secure user experience.

In 2024, the developers need to focus on Core Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet of Things technology. Additionally, it’s a good thought to consider wearable devices and the use iBeacon for your business.

One more point to consider is the UI/UX design of an iOS application. These days, users are quite spoilt. They want to interact with powerful apps with an intuitive and user-friendly design.

According to the latest iOS app development trends, apps should have a simpler user interface. However, to reach a great user experience, you need to consider advanced animation. For example, you can integrate motion or animated transitions among the screens.

If you want to create or update your iOS app in 2024, you definitely need to look through the latest iOS development trends and consider several that can be profitable for your business.