iOS 18 has been available for public beta testing for several weeks now, with plenty of users dipping in to try new features like Home Screen customization and the controversial new Photos layout. But Apple Intelligence has been notable by its absence in these early beta releases, with the update feeling a little underwhelming thanks to so many missing features.
The good news is that Apple Intelligence has started rolling out to a limited pool beta testers. The bad news is that it’s part of a separate iOS 18.1 beta, confirming that these AI-powered tools will be released in a later update in October or November rather than included with iOS 18.0 in September. That’s a shame for anyone planning to upgrade to an iPhone 16 specifically for compatibility with Apple Intelligence, but we understand the company not wanting to release something half-baked with the world watching.
This beta release covers AI features including Writing Tools, Reduce Interruptions, Priority Inbox, and the all-new souped-up Siri with its new interface. It doesn’t include any image generation tools we saw teased at WWDC, like Genmoji or Image Playground, which look likely to arrive even later – perhaps with iOS 18.2 around Christmas time.
Right now, the Apple Intelligence beta is only available to a small subset of users: those with a developer account and a compatible device who are based in the US will be able to join an AI waitlist, after which Apple will send an alert when it’s their turn to try it out.
We’d expect a similar system to be rolled out to the general public before long. If you’re really desperate to give this all a try ASAP, note that you can buy a developer account without actually being a developer, and you can set your language and region settings to the US without physically being there.
For most of you, the most intelligent move is to sit tight until these features have been properly tested.