What to expect from Apple's big annual event today (AAPL)

Apple CEO Tim Cook and other executives will deliver a keynote in front of thousands of developers, journalists, and Apple employees.

Apple holds this summit to speak directly to people who make software for iPhones, iPads, and Macs, and to announce what new capabilities Apple has been building into its products.

WWDC is usually about Apple's software — not its new hardware. But this year, there's a possibility Apple will launch a few new or updated products, too.

WWDC 2017 is June 5 to 9 in San Jose, California. What's Apple planning? Let's break it down:

Cooks keynote

Apple always kicks off WWDC by having Cook and his executive team run through a high-level overview of Apple's announcements.

Then, during the week, paying attendees can go to workshops and other classes with Apple employees who walk will them through the new features discussed in the keynote.

This year, you can expect Cook to give the audience a good idea of how many devices Apple has in use, and other milestones Apple has hit throughout the year.

You can also count on an awkward demo or two, a couple of dad jokes, and a bunch of new stats.

Like most Apple events, the keynote will be streamed live on Safari, Apple TV devices, and Microsoft's Edge web browser for Windows 10.

iOS 11

The biggest reveal for most people will most likely be the latest version of iOS, the software that runs on iPhones and iPads.

Apple typically reveals the changes and updates to iOS during WWDC, distributes the beta versions of that software over the summer, then pushes those updates to people's phones in the fall, when a new iPhone comes out.

Not much about Apple's planned software updates has been leaked, so a lot of it could be a surprise.

One thing we're expecting is a slight redesign for Apple Music that would focus more on its original video. It's also possible Apple will use this to launch two of its video projects in development, the "Shark Tank"-like "Planet of the Apps" and the James Corden spinoff "Carpool Karaoke."

It's also likely that Siri, Apple's voice assistant, will get a lot of love. Apple most likely will open up Siri to additional developers so they can integrate their apps with Siri, similar to how developers can build "skills" for Amazon's Alexa assistant.

Siri currently can answer questions Apple has programmed it to, plus a few from selected apps, like Uber. If you're an app developer not in the few categories that can work with Siri, like messaging or payments, you can't integrate your software with it.

Another long-rumored feature that could debut is a dark mode for iOS. Bits of code and assets for such a mode have surfaced in the past, and if Apple is indeed planning a new iPhone that can display darker blacks, then it would make sense to introduce the feature now.

iPads

The analysts have called the model "revolutionary," but it's unclear how Apple would talk about the device's improvements and advantages over its other iPads.

If Apple does launch a new iPad or two, expect the company to spend some time going over how the iPad Pro can be used as a desktop replacement, focusing on multitasking and productivity.

MacBooks

Apple is preparing to update all three of its lines of laptops with new processors, Bloomberg reported last month.

These computers wouldn't be redesigned, but they would get a faster chip that would help them last a little longer before becoming outdated.

Expect the MacBook Pro to get a new Intel processor in the Kaby Lake family, the most recent generation of Intel PC processors. The 12-inch MacBook is also expected to get an update, but it's unclear whether that would be a Kaby Lake chip. Finally, it's possible the MacBook Air will get an update as well — it would be its first in two years.

In recent years, MacOS, Apple's desktop software, has taken a back seat to iOS in terms of major new features. Since WWDC is a developers conference, expect big changes and updates to Xcode, the software everyone uses to make apps for iPhone and iPad.

Everything else

But Apple will also spend time on lots of smaller bits. It's expected to launch the newest version of its Apple Watch software, WatchOS, so that would gain new capabilities, possibly including sleep tracking or other activity tracking. Expect Apple to spend a bit of time talking about its health software like HealthKit, too.

Apple will also most likely spend time on Apple TV, which it called its fourth platform last year. Reports recently have suggested that Amazon may launch its Prime Video app for the Apple TV at WWDC. Apple is also likely to reveal new features, such as an expansion of its TV-automation app.

Apple could also give a look inside its new $5 billion campus, Apple Park.

One more thing

Bloomberg reported earlier this week that Apple could reveal the speaker next week before it would go on sale later. That would make sense, especially as an incentive for app developers to work on their Siri integration over the summer.

The idea behind the rumored speaker is that users could talk to it and tell it to, say, turn on lights, or answer basic questions.

"We expect Apple's first home AI product will have excellent acoustics performance (one woofer plus seven tweeters) and computing power (similar to iPhone 6/6S AP)," KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a note to clients in late April. "Therefore the product is likely to be positioned for: (i) the high-end market; (ii) better entertainment experience; and (iii) higher price than Amazon Echo."

Business Insider will cover the WWDC keynote live from San Jose on Monday.