They could make a Linux distro, a "yellow box" for Linux. I know it sounds totally ridiculous, but if Apple really doesn't want to make computers for software engineers, it doesn't stop them making an OS for software engineers.
Apple did just this, twenty years ago.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/MkLinux
Interestingly, they claim to have incorporated some of the technology from MkLinux into OSX, according to this page:
https://developer.apple.com/library/content/documentation/Da...
Make of that what you will.