Apple names 2025 Design Awards winners

Days before its Worldwide Developer Conference 2025 (WWDC), Apple has named the winners and finalists of its 2025 Design Awards for apps.

This year’s winners and finalists mostly include indie apps and startups, and contrary to the trend everywhere else, generative AI apps are noticeably missing from the list. This is the second year in a row Apple has skipped AI-centric apps for its awards.

The company did highlight some apps with AI features, though, including Speechify (won in the Inclusivity category), and music creation and editing app Moises (both are venture-backed startups).

Unsurprisingly, Apple focuses more on how developers have used its tools to build better experiences.

The company named 12 winners (one app and one game in each) across six categories: Delight and Fun, Innovation, Interaction, Inclusivity, and Social Impact. In its list of finalists this year, Apple highlighted a large number of apps and games from small developers around the world.

From @Apple: “Speechify is more than a great app; it’s a critical resource that helps people live their lives.”

A big thanks to our friends @Apple & proud the @SpeechifyAI team for winning this year’s 2025 Apple Design Award in the lead up to WWDC. https://t.co/t7k8nQK7HD

— Rohan Pavuluri (@RPavuluri) June 3, 2025

Watch Duty, which helped share information during California wildfires, won the award in the social impact category. Meanwhile, M13-backed developer prototyping tool Play was awarded the best app in the innovation category.

Huge news — Play has won the Apple Design Award for Innovation!

To be recognized by @Apple — the company whose platforms have inspired so much of what we’re building — is an incredible honor.

Immensely proud of our incredible team and so grateful to all the designers, teams,… pic.twitter.com/wp9WeuGcHZ

— Play (@createwithplay) June 3, 2025

Here is the full list of winners:

Delight and Fun

Inclusivity

Innovation

Interaction

Social Impact

Visuals and Graphics