In an indication that iPhone users are eager to try out Apple Intelligence, the iOS 18.1 install rate is twice as high as iOS 17.1 was a year ago, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook.
The AI features in iOS 18.1 provide a big impetus for people to update their iPhones, Cook said Thursday during a quarterly earnings call with Wall Street analysts.
iOS 18.1 install rate is double iOS 17.1
Apple Intelligence, a suite of software features that runs on iPhones, Macs and iPads, is AI done Apple’s way. Apple says it’s more personal, and more security-focused, than similar products. And because it requires a certain amount of processing power and RAM, it only runs on certain devices: the iPhone 16 lineup, iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, and Macs and iPads with Apple’s M-series chips.
The company began the gradual rollout of Apple Intelligence features this week.
“Apple Intelligence introduces a new era for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, delivering brand-new experiences and tools that will transform what our users can accomplish,” Cook said Monday in a press release. “Apple Intelligence builds on years of innovation in AI and machine learning to put Apple’s generative models at the core of our devices, giving our users a personal intelligence system that is easy to use — all while protecting their privacy.”
The gradual Apple Intelligence rollout drives iOS 18.1 updates
Beyond saying the iOS 18.1 install rate is twice that of iOS 17.1, Cook didn’t provide any numbers. But double the install rate stands out as a huge jump. And it’s a solid indication that Apple Intelligence is a big draw for customers. The company released iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1 on Monday, featuring a handful of early Apple Intelligence features.
Apple Intelligence software so far includes only a handful of offerings. Writing Tools improving and summarize text. A Clean Up tool offers a way to eliminate unwanted elements from photos. Smart summaries attempt to simplify dealing with notifications, messages and email. And a new, glowing Siri animation looks cool, if nothing else.
Apple Intelligence will gain new features in iOS 18.2, set to launch in December. This update likely will prove even more popular because of image-generating features like Genmoji and Image Playground.
“Apple Intelligence is generative AI in a way that only Apple can deliver, and we’re incredibly excited about its ability to enrich our users’ lives,” Cook said in the press release.
A later update round of updates, likely arriving in early 2025, supposedly will supercharge Siri, Apple’s AI assistant.
Leander Kahney is the editor and publisher of Cult of Mac.
Leander is a longtime technology reporter and the author of six acclaimed books about Apple, including two New York Times bestsellers: Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products and Inside Steve’s Brain, a biography of Steve Jobs.
He’s also written a top-selling biography of Apple CEO Tim Cook and authored Cult of Mac and Cult of iPod, which both won prestigious design awards. Most recently, he was co-author of Cult of Mac, 2nd Edition.
Leander has been reporting about Apple and technology for nearly 30 years.
Before founding Cult of Mac as an independent publication, Leander was news editor at Wired.com, where he was responsible for the day-to-day running of the Wired.com website. He headed up a team of six section editors, a dozen reporters and a large pool of freelancers. Together the team produced a daily digest of stories about the impact of science and technology, and won several awards, including several Webby Awards, 2X Knight-Batten Awards for Innovation in Journalism and the 2010 MIN (Magazine Industry Newsletter) award for best blog, among others.
Before being promoted to news editor, Leander was Wired.com’s senior reporter, primarily covering Apple. During that time, Leander published a ton of scoops, including the first in-depth report about the development of the iPod. Leander attended almost every keynote speech and special product launch presented by Steve Jobs, including the historic launches of the iPhone and iPad. He also reported from almost every Macworld Expo in the late ’90s and early ‘2000s, including, sadly, the last shows in Boston, San Francisco and Tokyo. His reporting for Wired.com formed the basis of the first Cult of Mac book, and subsequently this website.
Before joining Wired, Leander was a senior reporter at the legendary MacWeek, the storied and long-running weekly that documented Apple and its community in the 1980s and ’90s.
Leander has written for Wired magazine (including the Issue 16.04 cover story about Steve Jobs’ leadership at Apple, entitled Evil/Genius), Scientific American, The Guardian, The Observer, The San Francisco Chronicle and many other publications.
Leander is an expert on:
Apple and Apple history
Steve Jobs, Jony Ive, Tim Cook and Apple leadership
Apple community
iPhone and iOS
iPad and iPadOS
Mac and macOS
Apple Watch and watchOS
Apple TV and tvOS
AirPods
Leander has a postgrad diploma in artificial intelligence from the University of Aberdeen, and a BSc (Hons) in experimental psychology from the University of Sussex.
He has a diploma in journalism from the UK’s National Council for the Training of Journalists.
Leander lives in San Francisco, California, and is married with four children. He’s an avid biker and has ridden in many long-distance bike events, including California’s legendary Death Ride.
You can find out more about Leander on LinkedIn and Facebook. You can follow him on X at @lkahney or Instagram.
