iOS 18 has started rolled out earlier this weekSo now the focus shifts to iOS 18.1 (and the related iPadOS 18.1). The main difference is Apple Intelligence, which wasn’t ready in time for the iPhone 16 series launch. The first batch of AI features should arrive in Octoberunless you are in the EU or China – then the timeline is unclear at best.
In any case, Apple has reached the fourth round of beta builds for iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1. watchOS 11.1, tvOS 18.1, and visionOS 2.1 are also now entering the beta testing process.
Apple Intelligence itself is still in active development, so some features are ready, others are coming later. Additionally, Intelligence only works on iPhone 15 Pro and all four iPhone 16 models, plus iPads and Macs with Apple silicon.
A new feature for beta 4 is that Type to Siri shows suggestions that automatically update as you type. Type to Siri has been an alternative to using voice prompts for years, but now AI-powered autocomplete suggestions help speed up the process.
Apple Intelligence Features: Writing Tools • Removing Objects • Generating Images
Other AI features include system-wide writing tools, removing objects from photos, and generating images from text messages.
As usual, we warn you that beta software is not suitable for your daily driver device, as it still contains known and unknown bugs. Unless you are a developer experimenting with the new AI features, you may be better off waiting for the proper release in October.