What is Apple Intelligence? Everything You Need to Know About iPhone 16 AI Features

Apple will hold its Glowtime event on Monday, where the iPhone 16 and Apple Watch X (Series 10) will likely be announced. However, we expect Apple Intelligence to take center stage, especially after it stole the show at the WWDC keynote in June.

Apple’s big push into generative AI across its multiple operating systems has begun, and Apple has finally made Apple Intelligence available for public testing — but only as a developer beta for now. Some of Apple’s promised AI writing tools, Siri improvements, and photo library connection prompts are all available in Apple’s latest developer beta for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. But it won’t be fully released until late fall for a subset of iPhones, iPads, and Macs with the necessary chipsets — and even then, it’ll debut as a beta feature you can sign up for.

However, Apple Intelligence is currently a beta within a beta: it’s part of the developer betas of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1, while the public beta currently available on iPhone, Mac, and iPad is still based on iOS 18.0, iPadOS 18.0, and macOS Sequoia 15.0.

Apple isn’t rolling out all of its promised AI-powered improvements at once. The developer beta for Apple Intelligence includes AI-suggested writing tools that appear in documents or emails, photo tools including Clean Up to remove unwanted parts of an image, and a number of changes to Siri, including a new voice designed to sound more natural, more contextual conversations, a new glowing border around the display when Siri is on, and a double-tap gesture at the bottom of the screen to type to Siri.

There’s also instant video storage in Photos and AI summaries in Messages, Mail, Notifications, and Notes. But ChatGPT plugins, Apple’s GenMoji and Image Playground features, and other Siri features aren’t on board yet.

The developer beta has a settings feature that lets you opt in to Apple Intelligence features for testing, a process that Apple says can take several hours to approve. There’s still no word on whether Apple’s Apple Intelligence public beta, which is set to launch later this year, will have a similar opt-in process.

While some of Apple’s AI features sound really useful, the limited rollout to only certain iPhone, iPad, and Mac models this year (iPhone 15 Pro models or later, and Macs and iPads with M-series chips) means it won’t be used by everyone. Hopefully, we’ll start to understand what these features will actually be able to do.

What will Apple Intelligence do?

Apple Intelligence is billed as “AI for all of us.” The idea is that Apple Intelligence is built into iPhone, iPad, and Mac to help you type, get things done, and express yourself. It uses the personal context across your Apple devices to make recommendations and generate results that are more tailored to you. Apple is billing the AI ​​feature as setting a whole new standard for privacy in AI.

CNET’s Lisa Eadicicco, in her article on Apple Intelligence, states that understanding personal context when responding and completing tasks is an essential part of Apple’s approach to Apple Intelligence.

“Apple appears to be using this tactic to differentiate its own AI efforts from those previously announced by competitors,” Eadicicco wrote. “For example, the company explained how Apple Intelligence can understand multiple factors, such as traffic, schedules, and contacts, to help you understand whether you’ll make it to an event on time.”

What devices will Apple Intelligence run on?

Right now, Apple Intelligence is available in beta on the iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max, and on any iPad or Mac with an M1 chip and newer, with Siri and the device language set to US English. We expect that the next Apple phones, likely the iPhone 16 series, will also be able to support Apple Intelligence.

Apple Intelligence will be publicly available this fall as part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia.

Here is a list of current Apple devices that will be able to support Apple Intelligence technology:

• iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max
• iPad Air with M1 or M2 chip
• iPad Pro with M1, M2 or M4 chip
• MacBook Air with M1, M2 or M3 processor
• MacBook Pro with M1, M2 or M3 processor
• Mac Mini with M1 or M2 chip
• Mac Studio with M1 or M2 processor
• iMac with M1 or M3 chip
• Mac Pro with M2 chip

When will Apple Intelligence be available?

Apple didn’t provide a specific date, only that Apple Intelligence will be released to the public as an opt-in beta feature later this fall. For now, you can use Apple Intelligence on a compatible iPhone, iPad, or Mac running the beta for iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1, respectively, with Siri and the device language set to US English.

Where will Apple Intelligence be available?

It will be available in the U.S. at launch. Apple specifically says Apple Intelligence will work on compatible iPhone, iPad, or Mac models with Siri and the device language set to US English. Support for additional languages ​​will arrive in 2025.

Does Apple Intelligence use ChatGPT?

No. Apple Intelligence runs on the device (iPhone, iPad, or Mac) and on Apple Silicon Powered servers in the cloud, which Apple calls Private Cloud Compute. It depends on your prompts and questions whether Apple Intelligence is processed on the device or in the cloud. Apple Intelligence is not ChatGPT, nor does it run on the well-known OpenAI service.

However, Apple Intelligence supports additional third-party AI services, and ChatGPT is the first service announced. Access to ChatGPT will be integrated with Siri and the writing tools in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, allowing Apple device owners to access it without having to jump between tools.

What tools will Apple Intelligence have at its disposal?

Apple Intelligence capabilities fall into one of three categories: writing, images, and Siri. Writing tools will be available wherever you write. Apple Intelligence will be able to proofread text, rewrite multiple versions with tone and wording, and summarize selected text with a single tap.

Image Tools will be able to create original images based on suggestions in the new Image Playground app. You’ll be able to turn a sketch into a related image to complement your notes with Apple Intelligence Image Wand. You’ll also be able to generate custom and unique Genmoji with Apple Intelligence right from your keyboard. Apple says you’ll even be able to select someone from your Photos library and create a Genmoji that looks like them.

In the Photos app, you can create a personalized keepsake video based on the description you provide.

Apple Intelligence is giving Siri a massive overhaul. Siri will have a new design, richer language understanding, and the ability to type to Siri instead of dictating. Siri’s voice and response will sound more natural and conversational. Apple Intelligence gives Siri awareness of personal context and the ability to take actions across and within multiple apps, and product knowledge about device features and settings. Apple says Siri will be able to help you like never before.

How much does Apple Intelligence cost?

Apple does not charge for the Apple Intelligence service and has not announced any plans to do so.