This is what AI can do on iPhone

Some AI features such as text summarization, call recording have appeared in the first beta of iOS 18.1 that has just been released.

Apple Intelligence settings screen on iOS 18.1 beta 1. Photo: Brandon Butch/YouTube.

On July 29, Apple released the first test of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1. The highlight is the appearance of Apple Intelligence, which allows early experience of artificial intelligence (AI) features before being widely released in 2025.

Some of the outstanding features of Apple Intelligence on iOS 18.1 beta 1 are text processing, Siri improvements, email summarization, or call to text translation (currently only available in English).

Here is a summary of some of Apple’s first experiences with generative AI on iOS 18.1. To use Apple Intelligence, users need to register for a queue, own a Mac or iPad with an M1 chip or later, an iPhone 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max.

Ability to rewrite text

Word processing is one of the popular generative AI features. According to 9to5Mac, Apple has integrated this tool into the input system of iOS/iPadOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1, which means that users can request AI to process text in any application.

To activate the AI, simply blackout any text, then select Writing Tools in the next menu. Apple supports many different modes such as “Proofread”, “Rewrite”, “Summary”, “Table”…

Writing Tools on iOS 18.1 beta 1. Photo: 9to5Mac.

The first 2 options are the main features, which allow the AI to automatically process text without further guidance. If you want the text to have a certain style, you can choose items such as “Friendly”, “Professional”, or “Concise”.

When the mode is selected, the changes processed by Apple Intelligence appear in a new dialog box. Users can copy the results to the clipboard, replace them directly with blacked out, or request a rewrite if they are not satisfied.

According to 9to5Mac’s experience, the word processing tool on iOS 18.1 gives recognizable results, especially with different writing styles.

For example, “Friendly” feels less serious and emotional, “Professional” is very serious, and “Concise” shortens the text but has grammatical errors.

The rewritten text is placed in a separate dialog box for users to compare. Photo: 9to5Mac.

If you don’t choose a style, the “Rewrite” feature retains most of the original text, changing only a few word positions in the sentence and a few minor tweaks.

With other modes, text summaries can be useful when browsing the web. Meanwhile, the “Key Points” mode summarizes important content in bullet points, while “Proofreading” helps correct grammatical errors.

Of course, this is still the first test of Apple Intelligence. Even with the official release of iOS 18 in the fall, the toolkit will still be labeled “beta” until next year.

Email summaries and call recordings

Siri’s new interface with effects also appeared on iOS 18.1 beta 1 but is still the old version.

According to the WSJ, Siri’s ability to integrate ChatGPT and answer contextual questions could be officially updated by the end of this year, instead of early 2025 as previously rumored. Meanwhile, more advanced features such as processing information on the screen, running tasks in the app have not yet had a specific release schedule.

New Siri effects on iOS 18.1. Photo: iDB/YouTube.

Siri’s new effect is better appreciated because with the old interface, the assistant will take up space under the screen, affecting when watching movies, texting or browsing the web.

The Mail app on iOS 18.1 also integrates Apple Intelligence. When reading an email, users can request a summary of the content by pressing the Summarize button above.

In addition, MacRumors lists several AI features such as prioritizing emails during critical times, suggesting response content, and summarizing the content of multiple emails on the home screen.

Call recording feature on iOS 18.1. Photo: Brandon Butch/YouTube.

Thanks to Apple Intelligence, iOS 18.1 also supports call recording and text-to-text. In the call screen, simply press the record button on the left corner.

After that, the screen shows the recorded call alert and the note notification. Users can listen back to calls and transferred texts in the Notes app.

Respect for privacy

Apple Intelligence combines a machine-run language model and a cloud algorithm. To ensure privacy, Apple developed Private Compute Modules (PCC) chips to encrypt end-to-end data when sent to the server. As a result, even the company cannot access the data. Once the processing is complete, any data will be deleted.

“Built with Apple’s custom chip and security-enhanced operating system, we believe PCC is the most advanced security architecture ever deployed for large-scale cloud AI power,” Apple described.

According to Apple, the researchers can independently verify the security of the PCC. Users can also check the data processed by the chip through the Apple Intelligence Report section on iOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1 beta.

Users can check the data processed by AI in the Apple Intelligence Report section. Photo: Brandon Butch/YouTube.

Because the report may contain sensitive data, users can only access it after authenticating with Face ID and Touch ID. According to 9to5Mac, this solution helps prevent others from reading the commands sent, similar to what happened to ChatGPT on macOS a few weeks ago.

Reports are generated by default by Apple Intelligence and are only saved on the device for 15 minutes. Users can change the duration of the report for 7 days, or not save it at all.

Besides compatible devices, AppleInsider said that Apple has not released Intelligence for some markets, including the European Union (EU) due to privacy and security regulations affecting the “integrity” of the feature. However, the company is looking for a suitable solution.

Because it is still in development, many Apple Intelligence features have not appeared on iOS 18.1 such as photo and emoji creation tools, notification summaries, or ChatGPT. Users are also limited to the English language.

Of course, the test for programmers will have many bugs or drain the battery. According to CNET, users should consider when updating the device, backing up data before installing.