In February, Apple notified the European Commission of its intention to acquire certain assets and the right to hire certain employees from Rabbit 3 Times, the company responsible for the award-winning Play app design tool. The notice was published on the European Commission’s website this week, after a four-month waiting period, indicating the seriousness and strategic importance of the move for Apple.
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The Play app, available for Mac and iPhone, allowed designers to prototype iPhone app interfaces using Apple’s SwiftUI framework and then send them to Xcode. SwiftUI is a modern framework that allows developers to quickly and easily create user interfaces for all of Apple’s platforms, including iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS.
The use of SwiftUI in Play made the application particularly attractive to designers, as it allowed them to leverage Apple's latest technologies for prototyping.
In 2025, the app won the Apple Design Award for innovation, recognizing it as one of the most innovative design tools of the era. This award was no coincidence, as Play offered a unique user experience, combining ease of use with the power of the tools it offered. The ability to synchronize in real time between Mac and iPhone enhanced collaboration and productivity for designers, allowing them to work seamlessly and efficiently.
“Play is a sophisticated yet accessible tool that allows users to create interactive prototypes with SwiftUI frameworks,” Apple said. “Its carefully crafted user interface is both powerful and easy to navigate, helping designers create interactive prototypes and collaborate across Mac and iPhone, all synced in real time for seamless creativity.” This statement underscores Apple’s commitment to providing tools that empower its users’ creativity and innovation.
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The Play app is no longer available in the App Store, likely due to the acquisition by Apple. This development may disappoint some users who were accustomed to using Play for their design needs, but it paves the way for new features and improvements to Apple's development tools.
Apple could use the intellectual property it acquired from the Play app to improve Xcode, the main app development tool for its platforms. Xcode is an integrated development environment (IDE) that provides developers with all the tools they need to create apps for Apple's ecosystem. Integrating Play technologies and innovations into Xcode could offer new capabilities to developers, such as improved interface design tools and more efficient prototyping processes.
While Apple's exact plans remain unknown, this acquisition suggests a strategic move to strengthen the company's development tools and further consolidate its position in the software market. Apple's acquisition of such innovative technologies demonstrates its intention to continue offering leading tools to developers and strengthen its ecosystem with new and improved capabilities.
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In an era where innovation and speed of development are critical to success in the technology industry, Apple appears to be strategically investing in technologies that will allow it to remain at the forefront of technological evolution. The acquisition of Rabbit 3 Times and the Play tool is another step in this direction, strengthening Apple's ability to offer innovative products and services to its users.
