👉 Background: Apple, started in 1976 in a garage, is the world’s most valuable company worth over $3.5 trillion USD. It is known for iPhones, Macs, and iPads, but more recently, Apple has also been expanding their ecosystem with software services like Apple Pay, iCloud, and Apple TV+.

‍👉 What happened: Now, Apple has launched a new app called Invites and it feels eerily similar to Facebook Events. You can create and send an invitation to your friends, family or colleagues, monitor RSVP’s and send updates — including allowing all invitees to upload photos after the event.

‍👉 What else: While Facebook used to have a monopoly on social invites, its Events feature has become less popular as usage of the Facebook app has declined amongst Gen Z and millennials. So Apple is trying to herd all those scattered invitations and keep everyone within its own ecosystem.

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‍What's the key learning?

💡The more services a company offers that work together, the harder it is for users to leave. Tech companies want to build worlds that you never want or need to leave, creating products that work seamlessly together.

💡 For Apple, they have created walled ecosystem for their products, like iPhones, Apple Watches, AirPods and even iCloud. Every product is designed to work easily together. And now, they want to control your event planning too.

💡We know that Gen Z and millennials have been moving away from Facebook for years. In fact, only 44% of Gen Z users engage with Facebook compared to 79% of the broader population. So the timing of Apple’s Invites is aimed at capitalising on these scattered events by bringing it into its ecosystem.