Tim Cook promises WWDC 2015 will not feature all-male list of keynote speakers

Cook made it clear last year that he was unsatisfied with Apple’s record on employee diversity

Tim Cook promises to shake up the keynote speakers at WWDC this year (Getty Images)

Apple CEO Tim Cook is determined to get diversity on the agenda in the technology industry – and this week marks a big change for the company.

Today marks the start of the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), where its keynote speeches often attract global attention for any news of what to expect in the coming year from Apple, in terms of updates and new products.

Apple is already expected to unveil its iOS 9 operating system and the Mac OS X 11 operating system, while many are hoping the company will reveal a potential new music streaming service.

According to ReadWrite, there has only been one female keynote WWDC speaker since 2007, when Stephanie Morgan, who appeared on stage with her male business partner, spoke about their new app.

But this is set to change this year. “Look tomorrow,” Cook told Mashable, when the publication brought up the lack of women on stage. “I totally agree with you. You’ll see a change tomorrow”.

Cook made it clear last year that he was unsatisfied with Apple’s record on employee diversity, after the company’s first diversity report showed only 30 per cent of its global staff are female and only 28 per cent of its managers and executives are women.

He told Mashable he thought the argument that women do not want to be involved in tech a “cop out” and blamed the tech community for not doing enough to reach out and show young women that it’s a “cool” industry to be a part of and “how much fun it can be”.