If tech giant Apple (AAPL 1.12%) has any hopes of making its much-rumored iWatch a reality (and I, for one, hope it does), it will need a little help from its friends.

How's that?

Well, depending on its chosen final design, Apple will possibly have to rely on third-party component suppliers like industrial dynamo Corning (GLW -0.40%) for critical next-gen materials. And, thankfully, in the case of Corning, it looks like Apple may have recently received good news on that front.

Corning coming up big
Last week, Corning made waves when it announced that it had recently developed a commercially viable version of its famous Gorilla Glass that can be molded into 3-D or curved shapes. 

And why does that matter for Apple?

Although by no means a sure thing, Corning's announcement paves the way for Apple to create its iWatch with the curved displays many longtime observers had hoped for. This is certainly a welcome notion as Apple certainly could use yet another growth driver these days.

In the video below, tech and telecom analyst Andrew Tonner discusses Corning's latest project and what it could mean for both it and Apple shareholders everywhere.