Apple introduces new Keynote file format

Apple has announced a new file format for its Keynote presentation tool, part of the upcoming updates to its Creator Studio suite. The format, called Keynote Interchange Format (.keyx), is described as an open format based on JSON, designed to be readable and accessible to external tools, development environments, and AI agents.

Updates to arrive in November

The changes are not yet effective, as the updates are scheduled to arrive in November. The press release from yesterday detailed a wave of updates for all Creator Studio apps, including Keynote, which will also receive an AI assistant to aid in document creation and an MCP server to facilitate the work of agents in its files.

Current Keynote format limitations

Currently, Keynote files use the .key extension, which includes all resources needed for slides, such as images and text. However, this format is not well-documented and not easy to read. In recent years, Keynote files have not been packages that can be opened with a right-click in the Finder to access their contents, although there is still an option to save a package "the old way."

Workarounds for accessing content

Users can also duplicate the document, replace its .key extension with .zip, to retrieve resources from a presentation, a trick that still works. However, opening the package does not allow for deep access, as the texts in the Index folder are stored in a proprietary format that is difficult to open.

Open format for AI compatibility

Apple's announcement comes in the context of a move toward an open format based on a language well known to AI. The new .keyx format will be open, with Apple publishing its specifications, allowing anyone to adopt it to open, read, and even write files without breaking compatibility with Keynote.

JSON's role in AI and development

This change is primarily presented as an improvement for AI, as JSON is a common language in the development world and all large language models (LLMs) have been trained on a large number of JSON files. As a result, it is a format that AI knows very well how to read and write.

Similar approach in Xcode

The same strategy has already been implemented in Xcode, for its own file format. Here too, Apple has opted for JSON, considered easier to read and write by AI, as well as by humans, which is more logical in a tool intended for developers.

Future plans for iWork apps

For now, Keynote is the only iWork app to switch to this new generation of files, but it is expected that Pages and Numbers will follow, although Apple has made no promises on this subject.