On Friday, Apple (AAPL.US) shares moved higher, rising more than 1.1% as of press time, with a market capitalization of $4.87 trillion.

On the news front, well-known Apple product leaker Mark Gurman dropped several major exclusives: a touchscreen MacBook Pro could debut as early as October, and Apple's smart home hub has already been stocked in warehouses worldwide.

Gurman revealed that Apple's internally codenamed "J490" AI Smart Home Hub will be the key to breaking through. "This is Apple's next 'Big Thing,' and it's only weeks away from launch," Gurman emphasized. He noted that Apple's past attempts in the smart home space, such as the iPod Hi-Fi and early HomePod, were "half-finished products," but J490 will completely change that.

The device is described as "an Apple-made Amazon Echo Show in the Apple universe," with its biggest selling point being an entirely new operating system.

"If Siri AI had an operating system, rather than just being an app or interface on a phone, what would it look like? This is the answer," Gurman quoted as saying. The system blends features of Watch OS and StandBy mode, and "voice will become the primary interface interaction element."