Apple job listing suggests it is preparing new ‘HomeOS’ operating system

(Apple)

Apple is working on a new operating system known as “HomeOS”, a job listing has seemingly revealed.

The page invited applications from engineers to take on a role as a “Senior iOS Engineer” working on Apple Music. It makes reference to a host of well-known Apple platforms – and twice discusses HomeOS, which has not been publicly revealed by the company.

“You’ll get to work with system engineers across Apple, learning the inner-workings of iOS, watchOS, tvOS and homeOS, and optimizing your code for performance in ways only Apple can. Come join our team and make a real difference for music lovers worldwide,” the page read.

“The ‌Apple Music‌ Frameworks team owns the technology stack that enables the system-integrated ‌Apple Music‌ experience on all of our mobile platforms: iOS, watchOS, and homeOS.”

The page has since been edited to swap the references to HomeOS so that they instead read “HomePod”, the name of its range of smart speakers.

The apparent accident was discovered just days before Apple’s annual WWDC software event begins, on 7 June. The company traditionally reveals a host of new operating system changes and features at the event – and those could presumably include the introduction of the new platform.

Apple does already make products for the home, which run their own software, in the form of the HomePod. While it is technically an altered version of the tvOS platform that runs on the Apple TV, Apple refers to it as “HomePod software”, rather than having its own specific branding.

The company has long been rumoured to be working on a new version of those HomePods, with a full screen, more akin to the smart displays made by Amazon and Google. The larger version of the speaker, known simply as HomePod, was discontinued earlier this year, leaving only the HomePod Mini in the range.

Recent product introductions have suggested that Apple could be working quietly on unannounced new home features that are hidden in existing products. The HomePod Mini has a secret sensor inside of it, for instance, and the new Apple TV has a “Thread” radio intended to allow it to communicate with other smart devices in the home.

The company has rebranded its operating systems before, without making major changes to the way they work. Until 2019, for instance, the iPad’s operating system was known as iOS, the same as on the phone – but that year it was changed to iPadOS, intended largely to communicate its new focus on the tablet as its own platform.