Apple's 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is just a few days away, kicking off on Monday, June 10 with a keynote event at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. Apple plans to introduce iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15, tvOS 18, watchOS 11, visionOS 2, and HomePod Software 18. No hardware is expected this year, with the focus set to be on software.
We've rounded up all of the rumors about the software features that Apple will unveil at WWDC, but there will still be plenty of surprises given the scope of the updates.
iOS 18 and iPadOS 18
All of Apple's software updates will include a wide range of new features powered by artificial intelligence, but we've heard the most about iOS 18. The AI additions in iOS 18 are expected to make this the biggest software refresh that we've had in years, with Apple set to call its AI features "Apple Intelligence."
All of Apple's AI additions will be introduced in a beta capacity so that Apple can test them before revealing them as full features, and everything will be opt-in, so people can decide not to use AI. Some features will be handled on-device, while some will be handled in the cloud, with Apple set to tout the security and privacy of the hardware that it's using for its cloud servers.
Siri and Spotlight
Apple is expected to use large language models (LLMs) to train Siri, which will theoretically result in major improvements to the personal assistant. LLMs are the backbone of popular AI offerings like OpenAI's ChatGPT.
Rumors suggest that Siri will have a more casual, conversational feel, with a more natural voice. Siri will be able to do more than before, taking into account people, companies, calendar events, locations, and dates. Apple plans to give Siri control over individual features in apps, so Siri will be able to perform specific functions in apps that aren't possible today. Siri will, for example, be able to open specific documents, move files from one folder to another, delete an email, edit a photo, and summarize messages, notifications, and articles.
To enable these capabilities, Apple had to rearchitect Siri's underlying software. While Apple will likely show off these features at WWDC, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman does not believe the updated Siri experience will launch with the first version of iOS 18 in September. Instead, it will come in a future version of iOS 18 in 2025.
The Siri update will be accompanied by a refreshed version of Spotlight search on iPhones and iPads, with more intelligent results and improved sorting.
OpenAI Deal
Apple has inked a deal with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT technology into iOS 18, because Apple does not plan to build its own chatbot at this time. ChatGPT will be an opt-in feature for iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 users.
Some Apple executives have had reservations about integrating a chatbot into the operating system, but Apple moved forward with it because customers may be expecting that kind of AI technology given its prevalence. OpenAI technology will also power some of the other AI features that Apple plans to introduce.
New App Features
Apple is bringing AI features to many of its built-in apps, and the additions that we've heard about so far are listed below. There are likely to be other AI features that haven't made it to the rumor mill... Click here to read rest of article
Article Link: Everything We're Expecting to See at the WWDC 2024 Keynote
