Apple was essentially the first mover (by which I mean, the first to package the new tech in a viable consumer-focused product) with multitouch gestures, which we saw first on Apple and then a year or so later on Android. Apple also led with the mouse and with various screen technologies. Haptics aren't brand new any more than multitouch was; it does seem plausible they might do something with haptic stuff, and it would seem to explain that teaser.

The main things that we've seen on other platforms which Apple might conceivably copy are wireless charging systems (like WebOS had) or handling NFC payments (like a few Android phones had)