It's been a long time since the iPhone moments.

Tonight, the global tech community's attention will once again be focused on Apple's annual product launch event. People are looking forward to witnessing another "iPhone Moment."

When we talk about the "iPhone Moment," we refer to the critical point in various industries when disruptive technologies or products are born. They come with an irresistible force, completely reshaping the existing user experience, industry rules, and even the way we perceive the world. It marks the beginning of an era, turning the once unimaginable into the essential. From this moment on, the playing field is redrawn, the rules of the game are rewritten, and a vast new ecosystem emerges.

So, where do such disruptive moments come from? And how should entrepreneurs identify and seize the opportunities that follow?

iPhone's "iPhone Moments"

Almost all innovators and entrepreneurs hope to experience their own "iPhone Moment," expecting to have a product or technology that can bring about a disruptive transformation similar to what the iPhone did to the mobile phone industry.

Therefore, we must first look back at iPhone's own "iPhone Moments."

2007: The First - Generation iPhone

On January 9, 2007, Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, stood on the stage of the Macworld Conference and introduced a revolutionary product to the world - the first - generation iPhone. It abandoned the cumbersome traditional keyboard, retaining only the Home button on the front, and was equipped with a 3.5 - inch full - touch screen. Users could easily perform operations such as swiping and zooming with their fingers, making mobile phone interaction intuitive and interesting.

Illustration: Steve Jobs presenting the first - generation iPhone

The design and user experience of the first - generation iPhone were revolutionary innovations at that time. It sold one million units in just five days. Time magazine named it the Innovation Product of the Year and even exclaimed that "Apple reinvented the phone." This was the first true "iPhone Moment."

2008: iPhone 3G

Limited by technology, the first - generation iPhone only supported 2G networks, had a battery life of less than 8 hours, and did not support the installation of third - party applications. It was ridiculed as an "expensive toy." Then, the iPhone 3G made its debut in 2008, with a five - fold increase in download speed, laying the foundation for online video and social applications.

More importantly, the iPhone 3G was the first to feature the App Store. From then on, the functions of the iPhone were no longer limited to the fixed system functions but could be continuously expanded according to users' needs. The App Store created a win - win ecosystem, providing developers with a new distribution and profit - making channel. According to a report released by Apple in June 2025, the global App Store ecosystem generated up to $1.3 trillion in developer turnover and sales in 2024.

2010 and 2011: iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S

If the iPhone redefined the mobile phone, then the iPhone 4 redefined the iPhone.

The release of the iPhone 4 was a milestone in the development history of the iPhone. At the 2010 Global Developers Conference, Apple officially launched the iPhone 4. It was the pinnacle of the design aesthetics of the iPhone series, featuring a new design that combined glass and stainless steel with straighter edges. It is still regarded as a "forever classic" by Apple fans.

The iPhone 4S was Steve Jobs' last work before his passing. It upgraded the camera to 8 million pixels and supported 1080p video recording. The 64GB storage capacity could handle larger files. However, the biggest highlight of the iPhone 4S was the introduction of the Siri intelligent voice assistant. A simple "Hey Siri" could solve many basic operation problems. This was Apple's first time integrating powerful artificial intelligence technology into a mobile device in such an intuitive way.

Jobs passed away the day after the release of the iPhone 4S. This was the last phone of the Jobs era and the first phone launched by Tim Cook as Apple's CEO, thus carrying more significance.

2017: iPhone X

To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the iPhone's birth, Apple launched the iPhone X, opening a new chapter in iPhone design. It adopted the trendy "notch" full - screen design, removed the iconic Home button, and introduced Face ID facial recognition technology, bringing users a new interaction experience and higher security.

Source: Apple's official website

The "iPhone Moments" are not just about product iterations but also about the pursuit of technological innovation, user experience, and ecosystem building. These moments have jointly promoted the development of mobile smart devices and continuously influenced the global tech industry and the lives of billions of users.

Prerequisites for the "iPhone Moment"

The "iPhone Moment" may be difficult to achieve. However, if we compare disruptive cases in multiple tech fields on the same level, we will find a set of repeatedly verified logics, which usually include several prerequisites. These conditions together form a yardstick to measure whether a real "iPhone Moment" has arrived, applicable to any industry eager for innovation.

Maturity of the Technological Inflection Point

To trigger a disruptive moment, the primary prerequisite is that multiple key technologies happen to cross the threshold of maturity simultaneously. This does not mean the emergence of a single technology from scratch but rather that multiple key technologies develop to the critical point of being commercially viable, integrable, and affordable, evolving to a "singularity" that can support a new product form.

Technology needs to move from the laboratory to application, with reliable performance and stability. If it remains at the conceptual stage, it can only be a theoretical model or a demonstration prototype in the laboratory, unable to form repeatable and scalable application value and difficult to drive the industrial ecosystem to achieve a substantial leap.

Case:

The First - Generation iPhone: It integrated technologies such as capacitive screens, high - speed processors, mobile Internet, and sensors.

Tesla Electric Vehicles: They rely on the progress of battery energy management technology, motor technology, software algorithms, and the reduction of intelligent hardware costs.

Perceivable User Experience Leap

Simple technological leadership is not enough to define the "iPhone Moment." The key lies in whether complex technologies can be transformed into an intuitive, easy - to - use, and even enjoyable user experience. It does not provide incremental improvements to existing products (such as longer battery life or clearer call quality) but rather a new, intuitive, and fundamental pain - point - solving interaction method (replacing the physical keyboard and stylus with a full - touch screen and fingers).

Each experience upgrade lowers the threshold for using technology, which is a direct manifestation of "technology for the good." It does not overly pursue showy skills but rather allows technology to truly serve everyone through experience reconstruction. This is also the underlying logic for the "iPhone Moment" to continuously influence the industry.

Case:

Digital Cameras: They offer instant results, causing film cameras to gradually fade out of people's sight.

Uber: Through the sharing economy, mobile applications, and technological innovation, it has changed the landscape of the traditional transportation industry.

Reshaping the Value Chain and Ecosystem

The success of a single product is often insufficient to support the transformation of an entire industry. It must be able to drive the coordinated evolution of the upstream and downstream industrial chains, involving the active participation of multiple parties such as developers, suppliers, and service providers. This ecosystem not only provides continuous technical and content support for the product but also helps innovation cross from product to platform and from function to scenario.

The core value of the ecosystem lies in breaking the ability boundaries of a single product, converging scattered innovation forces into systematic competitiveness, and ultimately achieving efficiency improvement and value upgrading of the entire industry, providing continuous and in - depth power support for transformation.

Case:

App Store: It created a standard, secure, and global distribution platform, giving rise to millions of developers and a trillion - dollar economy.

Windows Operating System: It helped Microsoft achieve dominant success in the PC market.

Defining a New Category or Market

After being amazed by the "iPhone Moment," competitors will suddenly find that their game rules no longer work. They are used to moving forward in the established track, but the users' evaluation criteria have been completely rewritten, and the disruptor has become the de - facto industry leader.

Case:

Amazon: One of the earliest e - commerce companies, it has reshaped the retail landscape.

Coca - Cola: It launched carbonated drinks, creating a new beverage category.

How to Capture the "iPhone Moment"?

I. Pay Attention to "Immature" Experiences

Great innovation starts from a deep dissatisfaction with the existing experience. Don't just look at the data; observe people's "making - do" behaviors and unspoken desires.

You can focus on technologies that currently seem bulky, expensive, and niche but represent future directions (such as early wearable devices, VR headsets, and embodied intelligence). Then, think about "When the cost of this technology drops by 90% and the experience improves by 10 times, what fundamental problems can it solve?" If the answer is definite and surprising, it means you are on the right track.

You can also pay attention to "non - consumers" - those who choose not to consume because the existing products are too complex and expensive. Providing them with simpler and more convenient solutions will open up a vast blue - ocean market.

II. Look for Technological "Intersection Points"

The greatest innovation often occurs at the intersection of different fields. You can try to have a mental collision of "What if Technology A meets Industry B?" For example, "What if high - precision sensors meet modern agriculture? Can it achieve unmanned and precise fertilization and irrigation?" "What if real - time rendering technology meets remote collaboration? Can it create an immersive virtual office?"

You need to leave the office and actively communicate with people from different industries and technical backgrounds, understand their current work and life pain points, break the information cocoon, and stimulate cross - border inspiration.

Technology developers may never have thought that the logic they are familiar with can solve the long - standing pain points in another field. Industry practitioners may not realize that the long - troubled problems may only require a simple adaptation of cross - field technology. Breaking the dimensional collision can help needs and technology find a suitable entry point, sowing the seeds for innovation at the intersection.

III. People - Centered, Needs First

Technology is a means, not an end. Start from the core pain points and potential desires of users and work backward to determine what technology is needed, rather than looking for nails with a hammer.

You can use the Jobs to be Done (JTBD) theory to help you find the real needs of users. Its core is to completely break the "product - centric" mindset. Don't just think about "We want to make a XX product," but rather think about "What 'tasks' do users 'hire' our product to complete?"

The value of innovating a technology or product is to enable users to complete tasks more efficiently. It does not need to pursue superficial advancement but only considers effectiveness - Can it help users reduce decision - making costs? Can it make the task process smoother? Can it convey a sense of identity beyond functions?

This article is from the WeChat official account "Sequoia Capital" (ID: Sequoiacap), author: Hong Shan. It is published by 36Kr with permission.