This year, Facebook’s annual event for developers comes on the heels of Zuckerberg’s two-day Congressional testimony, in which he answered a series of questions about Facebook’s data-sharing policies and what some perceive to be the social network’s tattering of the fabric of society. And while those concerns haven’t yet impacted Facebook’s bottom line, the company has since gone on the offensive, posting answers to “hard questions” on its own news blog and launching an advertising blitz.
So it’s safe to say that Facebook might strike a different tone at F8 this year, as it balances its signature techno-utopian view of the future with the reality of what is happening right now on its platform. Since this is a software-focused event, Facebook needs to excite a room full of third-party app developers while simultaneously reassuring Facebook users that not all third-party apps are bad. This year especially, it needs to move beyond the idealistic phrases like “open and connected” and “bring the world closer.”
That’s what it should do, anyway. What Facebook will do remains to be seen until 10 am PT tomorrow, when the conference’s opening keynote begins. Here’s what we’re expecting.
News and Privacy
Data-sharing and privacy are the elephants in the room, and they almost certainly won’t go unmentioned. Facebook will likely emphasize users’ control of their own privacy on Facebook rather than offer any additional mea culpas for the way people’s data has been misused. F8 could also be an opportunity to announce more policies around app developers’ access to user data, but the company already announced a series of changes like this in early April.
AR and VR
Some of the most interesting announcements out of last year’s event involved Facebook’s efforts in AR and VR, and this year we’re expecting more of the same. Andrew Bosworth, Facebook’s vice president of AR and VR, tweeted back in February that this year’s F8 would would mark “the biggest AR/VR news from Facebook to date.” At at least 10 developer sessions will be dedicated to AR, VR, and “immersive video” throughout the conference, according to the event schedule.