๐With the second developer beta of iOS and iPadOS 18.1, Apple is easing the AI lockdown in the EU and giving German developers access to Apple Intelligence. While the new AI functions will not be available in the USA until the end of the year and in Europe until 2025, developers can test some features now. โ ๏ธ This requires an American App Store account and US regional settings. However, the beta software should not be used on everyday devices.
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The beta version only contains some of the functions presented in June, particularly without the cloud connection โ๏ธ. The new Siri design๐จ is striking: a colourful, wafting border indicates that Siri is listening. Siri sounds better, understands the user better, but remains limited to English and is far from being a fully-fledged personal assistant. Nevertheless, it is visually and acoustically fresher.
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Apple relies on large language models (LLM) ๐ง . These make it possible to reformulate texts, for example, to defuse an unfriendly message. With โWriting Toolsโ, you can select a style and the text is made friendlier and shorter in seconds โฑ๏ธ. It is also possible to summarise emails and websites, for example with a brief overview of the content in the Mail app or the Summary button in Safari Reader mode.
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The new AI focus learns which apps and contacts are important and automatically adjusts the notifications๐. However, it will only be possible to judge how well this actually works after prolonged use.
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The function to create reminders via a prompt such as โAll dog photos from this yearโ ๐ could not yet be used in the test as the app displayed an error message๐ซ. However, the search with natural language already works well, even if there are still a few inaccuracies.
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Many AI tools are still missing, including the connection to ChatGPT for longer summaries and Apple’s own cloud AI. Image AI functions such as the Image Playground app, Genmojis, image generation in notes and retouching options in photos are also not yet available in the betas.
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Apple is introducing โIntelligenceโ gradually for the time being. Although many functions were already presented in June, 2025 will probably be the actual AI year for the companyโจ. Further features and languages will be integrated by then, and the EU will also be included. It will be interesting to see which devices Apple extends AI to, such as the Vision Pro๐, Apple Watch or new HomePods. However, this has not yet been officially confirmed.
