Apple marketing head Phil Schiller made an unannounced appearance at Adobe's MAX conference on Monday, bragging about the upcoming Photoshop CC for iPad, as well as the companies' ongoing collaboration -- particularly as it involves the iPad Pro.
"At Apple, we care deeply about the evolution of the iPad into increasingly a tool that is essential to a creative workflow," Schiller said at the event. "That's why over the last few years we've been creating the iPad Pro line and we've been building unique technologies like our A-Series chips, special versions of that with the CPU and GPU performance for professionals."
The SVP added that "Adobe has understood the potential of the iPad Pro," and that the companies' teams have been "working together on some really amazing technology."
He didn't elaborate on that last point except to say today's MAX announcements are "the beginnings" of what Apple and Adobe can produce.
On the topic of Photoshop CC coming to iPad, and Apple's role in enabling creatives, Schiller said not much has changed since company co-founder Steve Jobs laid early foundations with the first Macs.
"As I think back on it, I know Steve showed us all the idea that people with passion can change the world. And Those words mean a lot to us. And we think long and hard about what Apple's role should be in supporting Adobe and all of the users out there," Schiller said. "It is that old line that Steve said, that, 'We exist at the intersection of technology and liberal arts.' And that focus on creativity and the arts to unleash that passion, unleash that vision is just as important to us today as it was from the very, very beginning. None of that has changed. What has changed is the technology. When we talked about that, we never envisioned a world where we would be running Photoshop on an iPad Pro everywhere you are. I mean that's just mind-blowing what's going to be created from all these brilliant people with that."
Photoshop CC for iPad, coming in 2019, will be Adobe's first iOS version of Photoshop to have all the same tools as its Mac and Windows counterparts. Professional artists and photographers have frequently complained that despite Apple positioning the iPad Pro as a laptop replacement, they haven't been able to do the same level of editing on the tablet.
Adobe also used MAX to unveil Premiere Rush CC, a cross-platform video editing tool that will include support for iPhones and iPads.