Apple Intelligence features coming to iPhones this month with iOS 18.1; here's what to expect

Apple is preparing to release its new suite of AI-powered tools, called Apple Intelligence, to iPhones later this month. According to a report from Bloomberg, the first wave of these features will be part of the iOS 18.1 update, expected to be available on October 28. The features include a range of tools designed to enhance user productivity and creativity, with more to come in future updates.

The initial rollout will introduce several key features to make tasks like writing, editing, and interacting with your phone easier:

Image Playground: A new standalone app for generating images from text prompts, similar to popular AI tools like DALL-E. This app will also integrate with other Apple apps such as Notes, Messages, and Mail, allowing users to create custom visuals within those apps.

Redesigned Siri: While the full integration with OpenAI's ChatGPT is planned for later updates, this initial update will introduce a new look for Siri and improvements in its natural language processing. This should make Siri smarter and more intuitive.

Notification Summary: A time-saving feature that compiles notifications into a quick, digestible summary, including alerts from third-party apps.

Webpage Summary in Safari: For faster browsing, Safari’s Reader mode will now include AI-powered summaries of web pages, making it easier to get the main points without scrolling through lengthy articles.

Writing Tools: Apps like Notes, Mail, and Messages will get AI-powered tools to help with tasks like proofreading, summarising, and rewriting text.

Smart Reply: This feature will offer suggested replies in Mail and Messages, similar to features already seen in Google’s Gmail.

Clean-up in Photos: An image editing tool that lets users easily remove unwanted background elements from their photos using AI.

Movie Memory: A creative feature that turns your stored images and videos into custom movies based on descriptions you provide, automatically stitching them together into a coherent video.

Future Updates

Apple isn’t stopping with iOS 18.1. According to the Bloomberg report, more advanced features are expected in subsequent updates:

iOS 18.2 will bring ChatGPT integration and the Genmoji feature, which will allow users to create custom emojis.

iOS 18.4, slated for March 2025, is expected to feature a significantly upgraded version of Siri. This new Siri will have deeper in-app controls, enhanced contextual understanding, and improved personalisation, making it capable of handling more complex tasks.

The new Apple Intelligence features will only be available on iPhone 15 Pro models and the entire new line-up of iPhone 16, including the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus.