Apple’s artificial intelligence should arrive in the coming days with the update of iOS 18.4. The JDN has tested the main features for several weeks.
AI finally arrives at Apple. After an initial delay of around six months in France, Apple Intelligence is about to be deployed in France. The new intelligent features based on the generative AI should arrive at the beginning of April with the update of iOS 18.4. For the sake of data confidentiality and unlike its direct competitors, Apple is focusing on local AI. A major drawback, only the latest generation iPhone will be compatible with Apple Intelligence. In detail, Apple Intelligence will be available on the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max and on the entire iPhone 16 range (Pro, Max, Plus and also 16th). The JDN was able to test the different features of AI with the public BETA version of iOS 18.4.
Really useful writing tools
This is the most useful novelty of Apple Intelligence. Apple’s update now incorporates several tools to write, reread or reformulate text. The native integration of the tool in the Apple OS allows you to call the different tools from any textual field. Whether in the message application, in the web browser, on WhatsApp or any application of your phone. It is possible to describe the modifications to be applied to an existing text, to reformulate it, to give it a particular tone, to summarize, to create a summary table or even to have it reread.
Finally, the native inclusion of chatgpt makes it possible to write a text starting from zero. On a daily basis, for the writing of complex emails or the summary of long texts, the writing tools are quite practical. Local execution of the models (except chatgpt) is a real plus: latency is reduced and the proper functioning of tools does not depend on the quality of your internet connection.
Summary of notifications: Practical, but perfectible
It is the functionality that has undoubtedly caused the most ink to flow. Apple Intelligence allows thanks to a SLM (a small model of language) to summarize the notifications of your phone. If the functionality has been able to commit blurry in the past by summarizing current events by hallucinating facts, its usefulness is real on a daily basis. Apple’s summary is often short and very effective. It allows for example to understand at a glance the thread of a conversation and the 2-3 important subjects without consulting several dozen notifications. Even more useful, when a mode of concentration is activated, the tool makes it possible to push the notifications it deems priority. The model is based on the content of the notification (example: “I am trying to reach you. Can you remind me of 15 minutes?”) To decide whether or not to submit an urgent notification.
On a daily basis, summaries have synthesized the notifications (s) in the majority of cases (s). A time saving which avoids, especially for professionals, to consult your messages regularly.
Visual Intelligence: simple and quick visual research
This is another of the many simple but roughly effective features of Apple Intelligence. The visual search allows by leaning the camera control button (or action button on iPhone 16e) at length to trigger the shooting assisted by AI. The camera launches directly and it is possible to then transmit the image directly to Chatgpt to analyze it or to Google Lens to search for the object present in the photo on the web. A native, well thought out integration, which saves precious seconds.
Improved email application, deleting defects in simplified photos
With Apple Intelligence, the mail application is transformed and becomes truly intelligent. Again, Apple’s SLM will analyze the content of each email to first classify the most urgent emails to treat. Practical to save precious time. More classically, Apple also offers to summarize the content of an email, such as Gemini or Outlook in particular. Finally, smart writing tools are available quickly.
Second on the majority of Android smartphones for several years, a “magic” publishing tool of photographs is now offered by Apple. In the Photos Application, it is thus possible to quickly delete elements from an image by simply pressing it (with the “correct” functionality). It was time!
Genmoji and Playground: Fun but futile
Apple introduces with Apple Intelligence the possibility of generating its own emojis with Genmoji. It is enough to describe in natural language the new desired emoji and the Apple AI generates (locally, always). Simple, basic but not useful on a daily basis.
In the same vein, with Playground, Apple allows its users to generate images quickly in all possible styles … except photorealistic (certainly to limit potential abuses). The tool allows for example to generate visuals quickly to imagine certain concepts. A tool, again, easy to use but not essential in daily life.
Siri, always useless (or almost)
This is Apple Intelligence’s black point. The Apple vocal assistant only evolves and remains below market standards. It is worse if we compare Siri with the gemini Voice mode deployed on Android. To fill the lack of intelligence of its assistant, Apple is focusing on the native integration of Chatgpt in Siri for the most complex queries. As soon as Siri does not think he can respond to a request, he addresses the latter to Chatgpt. OPENAI’s AI then sends its Siri response that reads it to the user. An integration certainly welcome but quite heavy in its use. The latency of several seconds between the request and the answer is quite frustrating on a daily basis.
And for the future, the news is not good. Initially scheduled for April 2025, Siri’s new version may not arrive before 2026 or even 2027 according to information from our colleagues from Bloomberg. A delay in the ignition of several years which is partly explained by the strategy of Apple: to develop the AI yes, but of the AI locally. The goal is still and always to minimize the risk of confidentiality – even if it means arriving very late.
Apple Intelligence is nonetheless an intelligent and relevant integration of the generative AI. With mainly based features on local models, Apple will certainly seduce the most demanding professional users about the security of their data. Without Whaou effect, Apple Intelligence has the merit of responding to what is truly expected from the generative AI: saving time on a daily basis, all in a secure manner. In short Apple makes the Apple and offers certainly fairly basic features on the market but 100% functional.
