Broken Tools: PWAs were almost being sunset
The Earth is a blue sphere, full of oceans and continents. Forests cover the land like a green blanket, rich in life and beauty.
The web is the digital reflection of this sphere. Websites are like busy cities, full of information and entertainment. Links are like roads, connecting us to new places. APIs are like the forests, bringing life and growth to the digital world.
But today, a conflict between Apple and the EU is shaping this digital forest.
Steve Jobs was an early web pioneer 1. When he introduced the iPhone in 2007, there was no App Store. Instead, he presented 2 the idea of web applications. He opposed Flash, and instead supported open web technologies. But later, Apple released the iOS SDK and native apps became necessary. The rest is history: a certain control over the mobile application ecosystem.
There are new challenges facing our digital forest today. Apple gained more control, and open paths became restricted ones. The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) aims to ensure fairer access.
With iOS 17.4, Apple announced new distribution options and over 600 new APIs to comply with the DMA. But then something unexpected happened: Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) were forced to run outside their own frame. Apple claimed this was due to EU rules and security concerns. In the EU, PWAs were disabled. This situation brought to my mind an article I published titled “Is Apple a Monopoly?” almost eight years ago. This control led to the priority of devices such as the iPad and Apple Watch.
After strong feedback, Apple agreed to let PWAs run normally again in the next iOS version. PWAs remain important for the web’s future.
The internet should always encourage new ideas and openness. Steve Jobs once believed in this vision. But now, parts of the digital forest are being fenced off. The Apple–EU conflict is not only about money, but also about who sets the rules for our digital world.
The real challenge is balance: power and freedom, security and openness. If we return to the roots of the open web, the forest can stay a place of growth, innovation, and limitless potential.
1. Make Something Wonderful was published in April 2023, the book collects Steve Jobs’ thoughts, philosophies, and early vision of the modern web.
2. Steve Jobs introducing PWA in 2007.