UKC

I am getting on a bit but this is getting ridiculous. I am 100% sure I saw photos (even a UKC trade show clip?) of a new DMM Apex (Light?) ice axe that looked a lot like an Apex built using the Vertex as inspiration. I now can't find any reference to it online. Did I dream it up? 

You didn't:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dmm-international-engineering_fantastic-even...

And I also think you can already order them from some websites:

https://www.barrabes.com/nl/dmm-apex-axe-50cm/product-498685?utm_source=goo...

Those adzes are worse than useless. Too small to do anything useful and uncomfortable to hold when walking.

There is a big adze, that will work for both the Vertex and new apex, in the pipeline.

I’ve got a prototype one - it looks very similar to the big adze on the old Apex. 

To the OP: there a new Apex out but it has a rubber grip like the old one. It’s a lot lighter and slightly less aggressive than the old one. Feel a lot like a Petzl Quark. I’ve got a pair with me in Nepal this month. I’m looking forward to using them. 

I assume the small adze is the same as is on the Vertex. They're good axes otherwise but that adze is a real negative, especially for the kind of terrain they get used on.

The Adze the apex is suppled with is the same as the one the Vertex is supplied with.