Apple is testing Find My app for third-party accessories

Apple has released the Find My Certification Assistant app. This allows iPhone accessory manufacturers to test how well their devices function within Apple’s Find My network, which helps users locate lost iPhones, AirPods and Macs.

The Find My Certification Assistant app is intended for Made for iPhone licensees so that they can test their accessories on the network. According to TechCrunch, the new app will test a large number of elements, such as connectivity, sound reproduction, firmware implementation and NFC functionality. This app is probably a new step in opening up the Find My network to makers of accessories, such as Bluetooth trackers from Tile, but also Apple’s own, as yet unreleased AirTags.

For now, this is a test. It is still unknown when the network will actually be opened up for the accessories. A month ago, Apple did update the regular Find My app with a new Items tab. This can already be used in the beta of iOS 14.5.

Apple announced last summer at WWDC that it would open up the Find My network to other companies that make compatible devices. This was probably in response to pressure from, among others, the company Tile, which complained early last year that Apple could give itself a competitive advantage by only giving AirTags access to Apple’s U1 ultrawideband chip. This is present from iPhone 11 models and allows precise location determination.