EGOPOLY

I've long had this pipe dream that Apple would loosen its grip on iOS a little. Apple very clearly, and to the benefit of all, likes to maintain unrelenting control over the user experience. Licensing your OS into somebody else's hardware is painful, risky, and subjects you to have to negotiate the user experience with outsiders.

So I don't think Apple would ever do this. 

However, there are some cases where Apple just would not be able to do it all themselves.  Two that I can think of are DSLR cameras and automobiles.

If Apple licensed iOS to Canon, how great would that be? Direct upload of your shots from the camera to iCloud, Aperture, Flickr, Facebook, Instagram! Over the air software updates. Remote control. Apps in the camera! Whichever DSLR vendor integrates iOS would instantly be my new brand. If it was Nikon, I would sell all my Canon glass and go back to Nikon.  If it was Canon, I would stay with them for life (as I probably will do anyway.)

(Automobiles are a similar thing. Car software is so crappy, it would be great to for Apple to be given control of the interior design and software of the car. This warrants a longer post, because there are million ways this could be done.)

It's fun to think about, even if it won't ever happen.