by We will hear about iOS 18 at Apple’s WWDC 2024 show, which starts on June 10.
It will determine many of the new features of the iPhone 16 and, in particular, see Apple advance to AI like never before.
Apple is better than most at keeping its new products under wraps, but we’ve already heard plenty about what iOS 18 will contain. And there’s plenty of chatter about upcoming AI bits and bobs.
However, as we all know well that AI deserves its fair share of critics and haters, we’ll finish with six non-AI features that are likely to appear in iOS 18. You know what? We think they might have more impact on the average user than all the AI gubbins, and they’re definitely more original.
iOS 18 features AI
Siri injected AI
The iPhone software is getting a major AI overhaul with iOS 18, and Siri will continue to be a pioneer of what was, let’s be honest, the kind of AI we have today. It will be powered by the LLM (large language model) technology similar to the chatbots technology like ChatGPT, which should help your interactions feel much more natural.
Apple Photos with AI repositioning
One of the most useful everyday tools added to the AI brush is photo retouching. The pros have used “remedial” tools in apps like Photoshop for years, and AI retouching takes that up a notch. Apple Photos is expected to get photo fiddling capabilities similar to those announced by Google in 2023 with Magic Eraser and Magic Editor. It allows you to remove people and objects from scenes, creating an approximation of what would be behind them. Terrible? Yes. Effective? Also yes.
AI-generated playlists in Apple Music
Spotify announced AI playlists in April 2024. Apple will likely respond in iOS 18. Streamer service curation has long relied on algorithmic playlist generation, but this external “AI” approach could allow you to create playlists create chat text prompts. Spotify has already done that.
Voice memos to be transcribed
Do you hate that your best friend or partner is obsessed with voice memos? iOS 18 will leverage AI to transcribe them to text on the fly. This is a fitting continuation of the evolution of mobile transcription and translation technology in recent years. The most impressive part is that it happens in real time.
Emojis generated with AI
This is the headline-grabber. You’ve heard of AI-generated images, but what about AI-generated emojis? We’re very interested to see how this one pans out, but we’re also very curious how emojis seem to have become almost ritualistic over the years. They come from the Unicode library, which is usually updated once a year.
AI-generated emails
It is clear that AI is used indifferently to generate emails. iOS 18 will see this added to the Mail app using Apple’s AI generation system. Big lambs. However, how this looks and feels to use will be an indicator of what Apple thinks of AI and where it’s headed for mainstream users.
AI summarizes emails, ads and web pages
Similarly, iOS 18 will also leverage AI to provide summaries of emails, notifications and web pages. This will be part of a proposed new “smart search” feature, but we like to think you’ll be able to ask Siri to do the job, too.
iOS 18: The non-AI stuff
Better route planning in Apple Maps
There are reports that route planning in Apple Maps will change, allowing you to create your own custom navigation routes, rather than relying on the ones suggested by Apple to lead to the destinations you choose. This will come in handy if you don’t always want to choose the fastest or most efficient route, perhaps because of some scenic views or on a motorway you just can’t stand the drive.
Animated text messages
According to Macrumors, iOS 18 will let you animate specific words in your messages, a neat way to add expression to your messages without relying on CAPS or emojis. This should be fun, although it will require careful and unrestricted implementation by people actually using them after the initial honeymoon period.
Free (ish) app icon setup.
Apple is set to loosen up the arrangement of app icons on your home screens, at least a little. You will be able to place icons where you want, within reason, leaving blank spaces on screens. App icons will still snap to neat positions, but gaps can be left. It’s a more Android-like approach.
Application icons that change color
This one could be fun. It looks like iOS 18 will let you change the color of app icons. If you are someone who arranges their bookshelves by color, you may have wanted this for years. Will iPhone let you color an app icon regardless of its shades? Or will developers have to submit their own tweaked versions? That’s an idea, but we want to see how this turns out.
New Settings menu
Apple plans to bring us a refreshed settings menu in iOS 18. This has expanded over the years, and the new version is meant to be easier and faster to navigate.
More real-sounding Siri voices
We might have snuck this into the AI section of this iOS 18 feature round-up, but it’s of interest to those who aren’t keen on most of the modern uses of AI, too. Siri is reportedly going to get a much improved language model, one that is less like a disembodied robot voice. Let’s hope this one doesn’t look like Scarlett Johansson, like OpenAI’s latest chatbot.
