The biggest takeaways from Apple's WWDC 2023; And China's buildup along the LAC signals trouble for India

Market Watch

• Indian benchmark indices ended flat, with the Sensex up 5 points at 62,792, and Nifty up 5 points at 18,599.
• Sectorally, Nifty IT (-1.88%) and Consumer Durables (-0.31%) shed the most, while Realty (1.19%) and Auto (1.09%) gained the most.

Apple’s mixed-reality headset, Vision Pro, is here

Apple, at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 5, announced its much-anticipated Reality Pro headset, as well as the launch of several other products.

The details: The Vision Pro, which resembles a pair of ski goggles, allows users to interact with digital content as if it's in their physical space, using their eyes, hands, and voice to control it.

• The headset features a 4K micro-OLED display and runs on Apple’s M2 chip, as well as a new, mixed-reality-specific R1 chip; it also has a separate wired battery pack with two hours of battery life.
• It can also switch between augmented and full virtual reality using a dial and supports Bluetooth accessories, including Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad.
• Furthermore, it features a function called EyeSight, which turns the headset transparent or opaque to signal to people around the headset user if they’re immersed in an experience or available to interact.
• Applications for the Vision Pro include watching movies (including in 3D and with spatial audio), viewing pictures, playing video games, and working on productivity software.
• The device will be priced at $3,499 — over triple the cost of rival Meta’s most expensive VR headset — and is set to launch early next year in the US market.

Yes, but: First reactions may not be as promising, as social media users were quick to criticise the headset’s price and design.

The big picture: Apple’s entry into a product category often validates the category and challenges competitors.

• This is particularly notable as the virtual reality market hasn’t fully taken off yet and mass adoption has been cautious: VR headset shipments declined by over 20% in 2022, while venture capital investments in VR startups have also plummeted.
• Experts believe the Apple Vision Pro could cause a reversal of the trend, with one industry founder speculating it could be “a Tesla Roadster moment for mixed reality.”

What else: Apple also announced the launch of iOS 17 with new features such as contact “posters” for personalized calling and messaging, a Live Voicemail feature, and an upgraded autocorrect powered by an AI model.

• It also launched a 15-inch MacBook Air, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro, all powered by the M2 chipset, as well as WatchOS 10 which introduces widgets and other new features.?

China’s build-up along India’s border signals that talks between the two countries aren’t going so well

Defence analysts and experts have been warning that China is building up infrastructure and shifting troops along its border with India, the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Why this matters: Just over the past few days, India and China held in-person diplomatic talks in New Delhi to discuss proposals for disengagement in the remaining friction points along the LAC in eastern Ladakh. In February 2023, both sides met in Beijing for the first in-person talks in China in over 4 years.

• The talks seek to restore peace and tranquillity in border regions and normalise bilateral relations, and the next round is to be held “at an early date”, said India’s Ministry of External Affairs.
• However, the current activity in these hotspots along the LAC doesn’t seem to point in the direction of a thaw in India-China relations. In fact, UK think tank Chatham House observes that the clashes on the border have fuelled nationalist sentiment, making it difficult to separate these tensions from other discussions between India and China, like trade or climate change.

What’s happening at the borders: At Aksai Chin, satellite images reveal expanded roads, outposts, and modern weatherproof camps equipped with parking areas, solar panels, and even helipads.

• Chinese positions were observed at Raki Nala, a river valley near Depsang plains, possibly hindering Indian patrols, while the PLA is building a bridge in Pangong Lake, Ladakh, enabling rapid deployment of Chinese troops from Rutog military garrison to the nearby mountain ridges overseeing the lake.

• At the Amo Chu river valley in Bhutan - near Doklam - China has built nearly 1,000 permanent military hutments and multiple temporary sheds to house thousands of PLA troops. This would enable an alternate route that can bypass Indian defences to the west of Doklam.
• Meanwhile, at the eastern border, both Indian and Chinese military have been strengthening their positions and infrastructure on the Yangtse plateau in Arunachal Pradesh. Mainly, China has improved important access roads and built a sealed road connecting Tangwu New Village to a point just 150 m away from the LAC ridgeline, enabling direct access of troops to the LAC.

ICYMI

• The BBC has acknowledged that it has been paying lower taxes in India than its actual liability.
• Ukraine and Russia are both blaming each other after a major hydroelectric dam in Ukraine’s Kherson region was damaged.
• The Kerala High Court has dismissed the case against activist Rehana Fathima, who was charged for a video showing her children painting on her semi-nude body, stating, “Nudity should not be tied to sex.”
• Sachin Pilot, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan, is on the brink of severing ties with the Congress party and launching his own political outfit.
• Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of India’s largest stock brokerage Zerodha, has committed to donating 50% of his wealth to charitable causes.
• The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has seized crores worth of LSD in its biggest-ever seizure of the hallucinogenic drug.
• The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, and its CEO Changpeng Zhao over allegations of securities law violations.