iPhones are stellar devices not only because of their top-class hardware but also because of the superior user experience that Apple provides via iOS. iOS 17 introduced new features such as significant iterations to the App Store. Now, iOS 18 is rumored to be the “biggest” iOS update yet, with generative AI and RCS support set to debut.
Over the weekend, Mark Gurman revealed (via MacRumors) to his Power On subscribers that iOS 18 is tipped to be “one of the largest operating system updates—if not the biggest—in the company’s history” that Apple will ship to iPhones. While the journalist didn’t specify whether it meant “biggest” in terms of the number of features, previous reports suggest these will include major Siri upgrades and messaging.
Generative AI features
Last year, Gurman mentioned Apple planned to infuse generative AI functionalities in Siri, which will allow the assistant to perform more complex tasks like completing multiple Shortcut actions. There are predictions that Siri would offer ChatGPT-like capabilities, such as auto-completing texts and answering complicated questions.
At the moment, there is no evidence that Siri will support text-to-image generation and live translation which are already available on Samsung’s Galaxy S24 via Galaxy AI. However, it does seem Apple is heavily invested in adopting AI in iOS this year.
A better messaging experience
Another notable section that could be improved in iOS 18 is messaging. Apple confirmed that it will adopt RCS (Rich Communication Services) on its messaging service. This means iMessage should receive better messaging functionalities like sending messages over the internet, read/sent receipts, typing indicators, and higher media resolution, among others.
RCS would enhance messaging interoperability between Android and iOS. For instance, users between the two operating systems could participate in group chats with the possibility of Apple eliminating the green-blue bubbles situation.
Optimized device performance
Given how iOS 16 and iOS 17 were riddled with numerous bugs, iOS 18 should deliver a more optimized experience to iPhone users this time. This idea was supported when Gurman reported that Apple paused the development of iOS 18 for a week to resolve firmware issues.
Based on Apple’s usual schedule, iOS 18 will be announced at WWDC sometime in June and will be made available to developers first. On the other hand, the official release of iOS 18 should happen as early as September when the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro are scheduled to debut.
What new features do you wish to see in iOS 18? Do you think Apple should prioritize making its next software operating system more refined with fewer bugs than introducing more features? Tell us your answers in the comments.
