I think that's quite an interesting strategic move which could have tremendous impact on the whole passkeys provider / password manager ecosystem.
What do you think will be Apple's next move?
What do you think will be Apple's next move?
Other providers like 1Password also offer cross platform passkey sync.
A more native and higher quality Apple Passwords app for Windows wouldn't even really solve anyone's problems. I don't know the specifics on how the Windows Hello authentication layer works, but my assumption is: Apple can distribute this app, but this app couldn't just make its passkeys natively available to e.g. Chrome on Windows, without a browser extension which would effectively bypass the app anyway. And, Apple already has a Chrome browser extension.
What changed: Apple & Google want to enter deeper into customer connection and at the same time offer a more secure and convenient authentication for their customers.