In Short:
At Apple’s “It’s Glowtime” event, the company introduced Apple Intelligence, featuring AI tools for devices like the iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 Pro. Upcoming updates will include writing tools, notification summaries, and an object removal feature for photos. The AI capabilities will initially support US English, with broader language options coming next year, enhancing user experience across Apple apps.
Apple Intelligence, the highly anticipated integration of artificial intelligence (AI) features into Apple devices, was a focal point of the company’s “It’s Glowtime” event held on Monday. These AI functionalities were first introduced at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024 in June. The features are being rolled out to the iPhone 16 series, which debuted during the September 9 event, as well as to last year’s iPhone 15 Pro models. Key functionalities such as Writing Tools, notification summarisation, and an object removal tool will be accessible in beta with the upcoming iOS 18.1 update next month.
Apple Intelligence Features Announced at iPhone 16 Launch Event
While the features of Apple Intelligence have been known since the WWDC 2024 in June, Apple specified which features will be rolled out with the iOS 18.1 update in beta. These features will also be included in iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1.
According to Apple, the AI features will be available on the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, as well as on iPads and Macs with M1 and later processors, provided the device and Siri language are set to US English. Below are the features set for release:
- Writing Tools: The AI-powered Writing Tools will be supported across various Apple applications, including Mail, Messages, and Notes. These tools will offer several functionalities such as text summarisation, text generation, and text refining. Users can also prompt the AI to expand messages or emails and modify them into different styles.
- Notification summarisation: This feature will utilize Apple Intelligence to streamline numerous notifications. First, priority notifications will be automatically assessed and placed at the top. Additionally, the AI will understand the notification content and display only those requiring immediate attention.
- Clean Up in images: The Clean Up feature enables users to remove unwanted objects or individuals from images. This is particularly useful for removing obstructions in photos of landmarks or unnecessary elements from special selfies. Users can either let the AI perform this task automatically or manually highlight specific objects for removal.
- AI Search in Photos: Users will be able to perform natural language queries to search for specific images within the Photos app.
- Email Summary: The AI will summarize long email threads to indicate their most important points.
- Image Playground: A feature that allows users to generate custom emojis or images through Apple Intelligence.
- Private Cloud Compute: This feature enables “stateless data processing,” ensuring user data is transmitted only for fulfilling inference requests. Apple has stated that user data does not remain on the server after the response is provided.
The initial set of features will launch supporting US English, with localized English options expected in December, and additional languages such as Chinese, Spanish, French, and Japanese planned for next year.
AI Features That Will Be Available With Future Updates
While the above features are set to debut by the end of this month, additional Apple Intelligence functionalities will be available in forthcoming iOS updates. These include ChatGPT integration, an upgraded Siri, and Genmoji.
- ChatGPT Integration: ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, will integrate with Siri and the system-wide Writing Tools, providing enhanced image and document processing capabilities. This will grant Siri access to the chatbot for web-related queries and more complex questions, with user consent.
- Smarter Siri: Siri is set to receive significant upgrades, enhancing its conversational capabilities and allowing it to perform more complex tasks across various applications.
- Genmoji: Apple Intelligence will introduce Genmoji, a tool that transforms rough sketches into related images and artistic interpretations of uploaded photos.
- Visual Intelligence: Users can activate AI by tapping the Camera Control button to gain insights into captured images, as well as book reservations or tickets. This feature resembles Google Lens and will also incorporate ChatGPT for advanced computer vision processing, allowing users to upload images of mathematical problems for solutions.
