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Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference 2016 (WWDC) will be held from June 13 through 17 in San Francisco, but if you want a chance to attend, you’d better get moving. Online registration for a random lottery that will distribute the $1,599 event tickets ends at 1 p.m. EDT on April 22, giving would-be attendees only a few days to apply for tickets.
Attendees of the 27th annual event must be members of the Apple Developer Program or Apple Developer Enterprise Program
Ticket lottery applicants will learn by 8 p.m. EDT on April 25 if their name has been selected in the lottery, according to Apple. Applicants who are chosen will be charged for their conference tickets immediately.
The WWDC event brings together Apple engineers with developers, experts and other community members for sessions about apps creation, innovations, new and ongoing projects, and more affecting Apple’s iOS, OS X, watchOS and tvOS software platforms.
WWDC 2016 will feature more than 1,000 Apple engineers who will lead more than 150 hands-on labs and events aimed at helping developers get code-level assistance and deeper insights into creating new apps and more for users, according to the company. Attendees will gain access to the latest innovations, features and capabilities of iOS, OS X, watchOS and tvOS, as well as best practices for enhancing app functionality, performance, quality and design.
At each WWDC event, developers from around the world get the chance to connect with thousands of fellow iOS, OS X, watchOS and tvOS developers to share their own experiences and get new ideas. Training and informational sessions will also be interspersed with lunch sessions and special guest speakers who will share their insights and ideas.
For interested developers who can’t obtain tickets to the event, WWDC 2016 will also be live-streamed through the WWDC Website and through a WWDC app, giving them access to the events and training sessions.
“With four innovative operating systems and a new, intuitive programming language powering over 1 billion devices worldwide, there has never been a more exciting time to bring our developer community together,” Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing, said in an April 19 statement. “WWDC 2016 is going to be a landmark event for developers who are coding in Swift, and building apps and products for iOS, OS X, watchOS and tvOS. We can’t wait for everyone to join us—in San Francisco or through the live stream.”
The WWDC first-day kickoff events, including the keynote address, will be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, and the rest of the week’s conference sessions will be held in the Moscone West Convention Center.
Up to 350 conference scholarships will be available for the second consecutive year for students and STEM organization members from around the world who would like to attend, according to Apple. Up to 125 scholarship winners will also receive travel assistance to attend the conference.
In 2015, the WWDC event included a wide range of sessions about Apple Watch development, including the introduction of the watchOS 2 operating system, an expansion of Apple Pay, and the introduction of the then-all-new Apple Music, a $9.99-per-month streaming service that debuted last summer. Also unveiled at last year’s conference were key new features, performance updates and other enhancements in Apple’s OS X and iOS operating systems. Both iOS 9 and the El Capitan OS X operating system were revealed at the event.