After a long wait, tech giant Apple released its beta developer version of the new operating system on Wednesday, unveiling an array of AI-driven features, including the much-anticipated integration with ChatGPT. This beta version reveals the updates likely coming soon for iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 owners, as Apple hopes the new enhancements will drive widespread upgrades among users. Currently, Apple’s AI, named Apple Intelligence, is available in an early preview for developers and early adopters, with a public rollout expected next week as part of the iOS 18.1 update. The new iOS 18.2 beta, released Wednesday, includes these features for developer testing.
Some key innovations in this release include:
- Text Rewrite Capability: Users can describe how they want Apple Intelligence to rewrite sections of text.
- Genmoji: Apple’s new emoji generator allows for creating custom, illustrated icons.
- Image Playground: An AI-powered image generator enabling users to create new visuals with artificial intelligence.
- Image Wand: A feature that allows users to remove objects or distractions from existing photos.
- ChatGPT Integration: This highly anticipated feature enables users to receive more sophisticated, ChatGPT-based responses from OpenAI.
- One major feature, however, remains absent: Siri’s ability to perform tasks within apps. This capability isn’t part of the current update but is expected to launch soon.
At Apple’s developer conference in June 2024, the ChatGPT integration was demonstrated. When Siri encounters a question it recognizes as better suited for ChatGPT, it will prompt the user for permission to forward the question. No OpenAI account is required to use this feature, and users can also access ChatGPT to generate text in text fields.
Additionally, ChatGPT will be part of a feature called Visual Intelligence, where the iPhone’s camera can identify texts or objects and even translate signs in real-time. The partnership between Apple and OpenAI marks a significant milestone for OpenAI, which was recently valued at $157 billion after a funding round earlier this month. OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, was seen at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters during the announcement of the integration. This collaboration comes after Microsoft began incorporating OpenAI’s AI models into its products. Despite the collaboration, Apple and OpenAI have not disclosed financial details of the agreement. However, Apple executives hinted that further AI model integrations, including those from Google, might be added over time.