Apple to launch new Apple TV set top box at WWDC with A8 chip, increased storage, enabling App Store, Siri, and HomeKit integration
New Apple TV Set Top Will Debut This Summer With App Store, Siri — Apple intends to show the device off at its annual World Wide Developers Conference in June
Context & Ripple Effects
The last dedicated Apple TV hardware story predated this one by years, which is why BuzzFeed's report matters: after a long drought, Apple was finally readying a set-top box built around an A8 chip and increased storage — specs that exist specifically to run an App Store on the television. The device would bring Siri and HomeKit to the living room, extending both services beyond iPhone for the first time.
The rollout didn't stick to the original script. The planned WWDC unveiling gave way to a September iPhone-event debut with an SDK and touch remote (per later sourcing), and by 2017 Apple had settled into an upgrade rhythm with a 4K-capable model and updated TV app. This March report is the opening data point of that arc.
First-order effects
- Developers gain a new target platform overnight: an App Store and SDK on Apple TV means iOS apps can be ported to the television, immediately expanding the addressable surface for the existing developer base.
- Siri and HomeKit land in the living room, making the Apple TV the hub through which Apple's voice assistant and smart-home controls reach the TV screen.
Second-order effects
- A full App Store on TV forces competing streaming devices to answer with their own developer ecosystems rather than competing purely on content licensing, since apps — not just channels — become the differentiator.
- Increased storage and an A8 chip signal Apple pricing the box as a small computer, not an accessory; the eventual $149 starting price with universal search confirmed the premium positioning against cheaper streamers.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds — and the 2017 4K refresh suggests it does — the Apple TV becomes a regularly updated platform with its own hardware cadence, turning the television into an extension of the App Store economy rather than a passive display.
- HomeKit's arrival via the TV points toward the set-top box as the default smart-home controller, positioning whoever owns the living-room device to control the broader connected home.
The trend: The TV is becoming a first-class app platform, with Apple extending its silicon-plus-App-Store model from pocket to living room and refreshing it on a regular cycle.