The iPhone’s Long-Awaited AI Debut Is Set For Later This Month

Everyone from Wall Street investors to tech blog writers have been anticipating the official rollout of Apple Intelligence, the AI function expected to be included in the next iOS update. Let’s take a look at what those initial features will be and which iPhones will support them.

Apple’s big bet

The term “October surprise” is often associated with an influential political event in the final weeks of a political campaign — but this election year, Apple is planning a little pre-Halloween surprise of its own.

As many of its rivals rushed to implement AI into as many facets of their business as possible, Apple has been far more deliberate in developing its program. On October 28, iOS 18.1 is expected to bring about at least a few of the many anticipated Apple Intelligence features.

According to insider reports, the update should include:

• Notification summaries powered by AI
• Improved communication with Siri
• A suite of writing tools and graphics

There’s still a long way to go until Apple Intelligence lives up to the hype, including a more powerful Siri capable of providing assistance across multiple apps. But the next update is a decisive first step in that direction.

But can you get it?

While the iPhone has received most of the attention, there’s also been some Apple Intelligence beta testing across various other devices — including iPads and Macs — operating with M1 chips and above.

For now, it appears that Apple Intelligence will only be available on the latest iPhones (15 Pro and up), and is expected to be available on the upcoming iPhone SE.

As for the next AI features to be included in the iOS, be on the lookout for the addition of Image Playground and Genmoji … possibly by the end of this year.

Chris Agee October 7th, 2024

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