Apple Intelligence Is Here as Part of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia Developer Beta

• Apple has released a few features of Apple Intelligence, the company’s system, as part of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia developer beta.
• Developers can test features like Writing Tools, New Mail, and an updated Siri.

Earlier this month, Apple released the public beta versions of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, watchOS 11, macOS Sequoia, and tvOS 18. However, it seemed that the company wanted to release Apple Intelligence, its AI system, in its later beta versions. As expected, the company has released the first few features of Apple Intelligence as part of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia beta versions to a broader, public group of developers and testers. The full release is still expected to be released during the fall of this year.

According to BleepingComputer, iOS 18.1 beta release notes read, “iOS 18.1 beta is an early preview of an update to iOS 18 that will be available later this fall. This beta introduces an initial set of features powered by Apple Intelligence.”

How to Get Apple Intelligence Features

Apple Intelligence features are currently available only in developer accounts. Further, AI features are available only on iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad or Mac with an M1 chip or newer version. People with these phones and developer accounts can update their software and go to their settings to see the Apple Intelligence and Siri buttons. From there, you need to join the waitlist.

The iOS 18.1 beta release notes say, “To try the Apple Intelligence beta, join the waitlist in Settings, and you will be notified as soon as it is ready for your devices. Both device language and Siri language must be set to US English, and the device region must be set to United States.”

Joining the waitlist is necessary because Apple Intelligence uses both cloud and on-device processing, and the company wants to ensure that it doesn’t overwhelm its cloud services by adding too many newcomers at once. That said, gaining access to the new features should take just a few hours.

See more: WWDC 2024: Apple Introduces AI, No, Not That ‘AI’

Available Apple Intelligence Features

Once you have access, Apple delivers a notification to your device. You can then explore the Apple Intelligence features. The following are a few:

• Writing tools: This is a new feature for proofreading, summarizing, or rewriting text.
• New Photo features: The beta versions have enhanced search for photos and videos. The redesigned Photos app will also allow you to create memories and a photo story based on an input description.
• Transcriptions: You can record, summarize, and transcribe audio.
• New Mail features: The Priority Messages feature displays the most urgent/important emails at the top of the app. Apple Intelligence can further summarize emails and create AI-generated responses that answer questions in an email.
• Updated Siri: The updated operating system versions were expected to include an updated Siri. As expected, part of the redesigned virtual assistant is available. It includes the ability to type to the assistant and its understanding of requests even if users stutter or are interrupted mid-speech. It also understands language better and can switch between voice and text during interactions.
• Reduce interruptions: This is a new Focus feature that displays only notifications that are considered urgent. For example, the notification may be about an emergency but not necessarily planned activity.

Features not yet available are Image Playground, Genmoji, Cleanup in Photos, ChatGPT integration, and in-app actions and personal context for Siri.

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