King Charles and Elton John attend Apple and King’s Trust Creative Labs launch

King Charles visited Apple’s headquarters at Battersea Power Station in south-west London on 7 October 2026 for the launch of Apple x King’s Trust Creative Labs. Sir Elton John joined him at a music workshop for young people. The programme aims to give participants technology, practical skills and contacts for work in creative fields; its longer-term results have yet to be measured.

Charles and Apple executive chairman Tim Cook met the first group taking part in the Creative Labs before watching singer-songwriter Skye Newman perform at the Apple Music Hall, according to The Independent’s report with Press Association material. Sir Elton and his husband, David Furnish, were also there. The visit put the young participants’ work alongside a performance at Apple’s venue in the restored power station.

What happened at the Creative Labs workshop

The first participants took part in a music-creation session led by Prophet Guillory of Apple Music, The Independent reported. The BBC identified Guillory as Apple Music’s head of artist services, tools and community, and said Charles was introduced to him as a mentor to young people. The reports describe a working session, with participants using the event to make and present music.

One participant, the rapper KP, had a song she made in the workshop played for the visitors, according to The Independent. Charles applauded after hearing it. The report also said Guillory showed the King spatial-audio technology at the hall; Charles joked that it was ‘beyond me’ as Guillory explained how it worked. Those details offer a glimpse of the tools and activity at the launch, though the reports do not set out a full course of instruction.

Why Skye Newman and Elton John were there

Newman, 22, sang ‘Crawling’ during a soundcheck ahead of a concert at the Apple Music Hall that evening, The Independent reported. Charles, Sir Elton, Furnish and Cook watched her performance. The BBC also reported that Sir Elton is a long-time supporter of the King’s Trust, the charity previously known as the Prince’s Trust. Their appearance brought attention to a programme centred on opportunities for young people entering creative work.

Deborah Babalola, a 26-year-old King’s Trust ambassador who took part in the workshop, told the Press Association that she was delighted by Charles’s visit and grateful for opportunities the Trust had given people. Her comments describe her experience and reaction to the event; they do not establish what this new group of Creative Labs participants will achieve after the launch.

What Apple and the King’s Trust say the programme offers

The Creative Labs are intended to give young people access to technology, resources and practical skills that could help them move into work, according to the BBC and The Independent. Alisha Johnson Wilder, Apple’s senior director of global community impact, said the initiative would connect young creators with Apple experts, technology and mentorship. Those are the partners’ stated aims for the programme, rather than demonstrated employment outcomes from it.

The partnership has a history beyond Wednesday’s launch. The Independent reported that Apple and the King’s Trust have worked together since 2019 to develop coding and creative digital skills among young people. The Trust says it has helped more than 1.3 million young people across the UK over its wider history. The BBC reported that the charity is now in its 50th year. Those figures describe the Trust’s broader work, not the reach of the newly launched Creative Labs.

What remains unknown about Creative Labs

The reports identify a first group of participants, but give no number for that group or criteria for joining it. They do not specify how many further workshops are planned, where those sessions might take place, or when they would run. Anyone interested in taking part therefore has no application timetable or eligibility details in the two accounts of the launch.

There are also no reported measures yet of how the Creative Labs affect participants’ training or employment. The workshop showed young people making music, meeting mentors and presenting work in front of visitors. Whether those experiences lead to sustained opportunities is a separate question that the launch reports cannot answer. For now, the confirmed development is the start of the programme and the activities observed at Battersea Power Station.