Apple’s new AI features may not arrive on iPhone 16. Here’s what we know so far

Apple has forayed into artificial intelligence with a new service called Apple Intelligence, which it showed off at last week’s WWDC 2024. While Apple showed off a number of AI features it will be bringing to iPhones, iPads and MacBooks during WWDC, these features weren’t part of the first beta for developers made available by the company just a few hours later.

According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, most of Apple Intelligence’s features won’t be available to users until later this summer. What’s more, when the service finally debuts in September with the stable version of iOS 18, it will be available in preview, highlighting that it’s not quite ready for regular use yet. Apple Intelligence will reportedly initially only be available for a portion of Apple’s American English usage, and users will need to sign up for a waitlist to use some features.

Traditionally, Apple releases the latest version of iOS shortly after the launch of the new iPhone series in mid-September. However, since these devices must be manufactured and equipped with the latest operating system one week in advance, the new features must be completed by mid-August. Given that many of the new AI features won’t be ready in time, Apple will likely roll them out gradually over several months.

A staggered approach to implementing Apple Intelligence could provide Apple with much-needed time to build its cloud infrastructure, train its artificial intelligence models, and limit the potential spread of misinformation.

Siri 2.0 won’t appear until next year:

Gurman also stated that most of the revamped Siri features Apple unveiled at WWDC 2024 won’t arrive until next year. According to reports, the version of Siri that will be introduced with iOS 18 and iPhone 16 will have several new features, including a new interface, typing on Siri, better natural conversation skills, and a broader understanding of Apple products.

Moreover, Apple Intelligence integration with ChatGPT may not be implemented until next year. Meanwhile, Apple is also said to be looking to sign deals with Google and Anthropic to bring their chatbots to iPhones. A similar deal could be struck with Baidu and Alibaba Group in China.