Apple will make a rare conference appearance in Calgary next week, joining the inaugural Swift Rockies gathering for iOS developers at the Calgary Zoo.
Taking place July 22 and 23, Swift Rockies is a boutique, single-track conference created by Calgary-based iOS engineer Raman Singh. The independently organized event is capped at 180 attendees and designed to encourage closer interaction between speakers and developers through round-table seating and an intimate format.
The newest addition to the agenda is a 90-minute presentation from Apple’s Worldwide Developer Relations team. Scheduled for the afternoon of July 23, the session will examine the biggest announcements from WWDC26, including the thinking behind Apple’s new technologies and how developers can apply them in real-world projects.
Swift Rockies has also attracted experienced developers and educators from across the Apple ecosystem. Speakers include Ash Furrow, Dave DeLong, Daniel Steinberg, Stewart Lynch, Ellen Shapiro, and Vancouver-based Steamclock director Nick Wilkinson. Sessions will cover Swift concurrency, app development, accessibility, artificial intelligence, build performance, and other practical topics.
Singh, a lead iOS engineer at theScore Bet, created the conference after seeing a need for a dedicated Canadian gathering focused on Swift and Apple-platform development. He chose the Calgary Zoo to give visiting attendees an opportunity to bring their families and turn the conference trip into a summer getaway.
The two main conference days will be accompanied by optional workshops on July 21 and 24. The program will conclude with a live podcast panel and a musical performance by James Dempsey and the Breakpoints.
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