Apple just dropped the first wave of its “Apple Intelligence” features for iPhone, iPad, and Mac through a free update with iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1. 

This new AI-powered system is more than just another feature; it’s practically a personal assistant that’s smart enough to understand and create language and images, streamline tasks across apps, and use your personal context to simplify daily to-dos. 

Don’t worry—Apple’s keeping it very Apple by making sure all this happens with a strong emphasis on privacy. And this is just the start—more features are in the pipeline.

Systemwide Writing Tools give you a full-on writing assistant. Whether you’re in Mail, Messages, or third-party apps, Apple Intelligence can now refine, rewrite, proofread, and summarize your text to fit the moment.

Want your message to sound more professional, concise, or just friendlier? It’s got you. It’s like your writing skills just leveled up without you even trying.

Siri has also stepped up its game, going fully conversational with a cleaner, more flexible design. Now, Siri can handle back-and-forth chats, answer deeper Apple-related questions, and even take typed requests.

Photos got smarter, too. Searching for “Maya skateboarding in a tie-dye shirt”? Just say it, and Photos will find it. Plus, there’s a new Clean Up tool that lets you remove photo-bombers in a snap.

There's more to come. We’ll see some heavy-hitter updates by December, including even deeper integrations with ChatGPT and a new Camera Control feature that’s almost like real-time info at your fingertips. Imagine pulling up details on a restaurant right from your camera or translating text on the spot.

The privacy front is rock-solid, as expected. Apple Intelligence keeps on-device processing at its core, and for requests needing cloud power, Private Cloud Compute ensures your data is only used for your requests—no storage, no sharing with Apple. Apple’s even letting independent experts inspect their cloud code to back up that privacy promise.

Apple’s Release Schedule

• The first set of Apple Intelligence features is available now as a free software update with iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1, and can be accessed in most regions around the world when the device and Siri language are set to U.S. English.
  
  
• Apple Intelligence is quickly adding support for more languages. In December, Apple Intelligence will be available for localized English in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.K., and in April, a software update will deliver expanded language support, with more coming throughout the year. Chinese, English (India), English (Singapore), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Vietnamese, and other languages will be supported.
  
  
• Apple Intelligence is available on iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPad with A17 Pro or M1 and later, and Mac with M1 and later.