Apple’s newest emojis put on a happy face
Apple is lifting the curtain on dozens of new emojis that will roll out over the next several weeks — and one clear focus of the newbie characters is diversity and inclusion.
The new emojis include a woman wearing a headscarf, a woman breastfeeding, gender-neutral individuals and the signlanguage symbol for “I love you.”
The tech giant will release the new characters to developers in next week’s update to iOS 11 for iPhone and iPad — but it’s not yet known when the emojis will be available to the public.
Apple has been working to diversity its emoji lineup over the past few years, introducing the option of selecting an emoji’s skin tone and adding same-sex couples to its roster.
In addition to increasing representation, Apple is rolling out some hotly anticipated smiley variations, such as the “shhh” smiley and one whose head is exploding.
The animals section will see its ranks grow with the addition of a hedgehog, cricket and brontosaurus, among other things.
The dragon will no longer be the only mythical creature in the emoji catalog. The update will introduce a wizard, mermaid, vampire and fairy as well.