The countdown format is pure theater. Someone set a public deadline for Apple. WWDC 2026 is when Apple previews its software vision—if they can't address keyboard quality by then, priorities are fundamentally misaligned.
Apple's about to preview Gemini-powered Siri after partnering with Google for $1 billion annually because its own infrastructure couldn't keep pace. Meanwhile, correctly tapped letters aren't registering. Billions spent chasing AI while basic functionality crumbles.
This is the third "breaking point" story in Apple's ecosystem within two months. The developer whose 25-year Apple ID got permanently locked. The Patreon creator fee enforcement. Now the keyboard. Apple's platform control is generating breaking points faster than it can contain them.
The community would accept transparency. The "acknowledge or fix" demand reveals what users actually suspect: Apple knows the keyboard is broken but won't admit quality control failures. When your technical evangelists start setting public deadlines and threatening Android switches, something's shifted.
Text input is foundational. AI assistants, app ecosystems, platform services—all of it sits on top. When the foundation degrades while you're building upward, eventually something gives.
Apple has four months. Fix it, acknowledge it, or watch the countdown hit zero.