After months of speculation regarding Apple’s upcoming Apple Intelligence features, a sneak peek has emerged, suggesting that rumors about delays in the technology might be overstated. Apple’s generative AI, expected to be a major feature across iPhones, iPads, and Macs this year, is making its debut in an early form through developer betas for iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1. This early access provides developers with a glimpse of Apple’s promised generative features, hinting that some aspects of Apple Intelligence will be included with the highly anticipated iPhone 16.
Apple is releasing the iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS 15.1 dev betas to developers and compatible devices, enabling them to explore the new AI capabilities. This comes shortly after Bloomberg reported potential delays, sparking concerns about whether Apple Intelligence would be ready for the iPhone 16 launch. Now, it appears that the new iPhone will almost certainly incorporate some of these AI features. However, users must be enrolled in the developer’s program to access Apple Intelligence. These AI features are not currently available to regular users.
Apple Intelligence is expected to introduce advanced functionalities such as writing assistance, natural language search, context retention in Siri, creation of memory movies based on prompts, and transcription summaries. However, not all these features will be accessible in the initial preview. Currently, only iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPads and Macs with at least M1 chips can access Apple Intelligence features in the new dev betas, and it will be limited to English-language (US) systems.
One notable update includes a significant redesign of Siri, featuring a new look and functionality like a double-tap at the bottom of the screen for text input to Siri and the ability to maintain context across multiple queries. Currently, Apple’s AI features are unavailable in the EU or China. Developers can experiment with the generative writing tools in existing Apple apps, enabling text rewriting and summarization in emails, along with smart replies and natural language search capabilities in the Photos app. Users can also create movie memories using predefined and custom prompts.
Several features, including Genmoji creation, image generation, Photo Clean Up, and ChatGPT integration, will not be included in these initial dev betas. Unlike public betas, developer betas are not intended for general use and should not be installed on primary devices. However, previews of Apple Intelligence will soon be available, providing a glimpse of the new Writing Tools Box, the Type to Siri keyboard, and text-based responses from Siri. Developers will need to access the settings app and locate the “Apple Intelligence & Siri” option to join a waitlist. After joining, they will receive a notification when the features are activated.
This phased rollout is likely Apple’s strategy to manage the load on its new Private Compute Cloud, which will handle complex generative queries that are too demanding for on-device processing. This gradual introduction of Apple Intelligence is crucial for Apple as it aims to compete in the generative AI space, where companies like Google and Samsung already hold a significant lead. Users have been enjoying generative AI features on Pixel phones for months and Samsung’s Galaxy AI since its launch in January, with further improvements seen on the new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6.
As for when Apple Intelligence will be available in iOS 18 public betas, no specific timeline has been provided by Apple. It is expected to arrive sometime in the fall, potentially anytime from September to late December. It is hoped that the features will be ready in time for the anticipated September launch of the iPhone 16.
