iOS 18 will be Apple's annual iPhone software update in 2024 and will be full of changes. The update was described as “ambitious and compelling”. Important new features and design changes are planned. Read on for a quick overview of everything we know about the new features in iOS 18 so far.
What to expect from iOS 18
In November, Bloomberg reported that Apple suspended the development of new features for iOS 18 for a week to fix bugs. This was done after the completion of the “first stage”; build of iOS 18. Typically, Apple immediately begins work on the second stage, but this year it took a week-long break to iron out early bugs and problems.
However, this delay is minor. is unlikely to have a significant impact on iOS 18 in terms of new features and its release date. Instead, Apple simply took an early pause to ensure that iOS 18 is being developed on the most stable basis possible.
When will iOS 18 be released?
iOS 18 will most likely be announced at WWDC 2024, which will take place in the first or second week of June. It will then be handed over to the developers for beta testing. The public beta will likely be released in July 2024, with release to the general public in September.
Here's a short list of the latest iOS release dates:
- iOS 17: September 17, 2023
- iOS 16: September 12, 2022
- iOS 15 : September 20, 2021
- iOS 14: September 16, 2020
- iOS 13: September 19, 2019
- iOS 12: September 17, 2018 .
iOS 18: major new artificial intelligence features
Apple was reportedly caught 'by surprise'; the sudden emergence of artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT, Google Bard and Microsoft Copilot. As such, the company is reportedly working on a wide range of new AI features for iOS.
In October, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman gave an in-depth look at some of Apple's features. company's goals for artificial intelligence in iOS 18. Report says 'there is a decree'; on Apple's software engineering team and Craig Federighi to pack iOS 18 with “features that run on the company's larger language model.”
Here's a sneak peek:
- An updated version of Siri. more intelligent and able to take advantage of a new AI system that includes large language model technology.
- AI integration in the Messages app that can “ask questions and auto-fill sentences.”
- New AI features for Apple Music to create “auto-generated playlists”
- Integration of generative AI into iWork apps, including Keynote and Pages.
- Adding generative AI features to Xcode, allowing developers to “write new apps faster.”
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Not all of them will necessarily be tied to iOS 18 or ready to ship as part of iOS 18. However, Apple's clear goal is — fill iOS 18 with as many artificial intelligence functions as possible.
9to5Mac has discovered evidence of Apple working on new artificial intelligence and large language model technology in iOS 17.4. We reported that Apple is using OpenAI's ChatGPT API for internal testing to help develop its own AI models.
- iOS 17.4: Apple continues to work on AI-powered Siri and Messages with ChatGPT
RCS support
In October, Apple made a surprise announcement: RCS support will come to the iPhone sometime in 2024. RCS, or Rich Communication Services, is the successor to SMS and MMS. It will add a number of iMessage-style features to text messages between iPhone and Android users.
RCS unlocks features such as read receipts, typing indicators, and support for sending high-quality images and videos for iPhone-to-iPhone conversations. and Android devices. It will also give users the ability to share their location with other people in text threads. Unlike regular SMS, RCS can also work over mobile data or Wi-Fi.
Apple's specific wording is that RCS will be available on iPhone “later next year.” via software update. This would seem to suggest that this feature could be enabled in iOS 18.
What else?
Bloomberg called iOS 18 the most “ambitious and compelling” version of Apple's iOS 18 yet. update after years. The update is reported to be considered “groundbreaking”; inside Apple and is full of “big new features and designs, as well as security and performance improvements.”
It's unclear at this point what else iOS 18 might include. Adding major new AI features would certainly meet the project's “ambitious and compelling” goals. description of iOS 18.
Apple calls iOS 18 potentially the “biggest” version of iOS 18. According to Bloomberg, iOS has never been updated. There's reportedly a lot more in the works for the update than just the aforementioned new AI features.
It's important to remember that Apple's plans for iOS 18 may change between now and June next year. Over the next seven months, Apple will finalize its plans to release iOS 18 based on development progress. Some features may also be announced at WWDC 2024 but released much later in updates such as iOS 18.1 and iOS 18.2.
What are you hoping to see in iOS 18? Do you think Apple can catch up with other companies with new AI features? Let us know in the comments.
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