Apple Intelligence will miss important iOS 18, macOS Sequoia release date (report)

Close up of an iPhone in someone's hand with the Siri screen border activated in iOS 18
(Image credit: Apple)

The impressive artificial intelligence tools and features expected to arrive with Apple Intelligence will likely not be ready to launch alongside iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia in September.

The news comes after an in-the-know Apple expert, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, claimed yesterday that the company requires further time to fix potential bugs with the software and improve stability.

However, all isn't lost for those eagerly anticipating the arrival of Apple's AI-powered toolset, as developer and public betas of each platform continue to roll out — allowing eager users to test upcoming features ahead of their full release.

Apple Intelligence: When will it arrive on iPhone, Mac, and iPad?

Apple revealed its new suite of AI-backed features and tools during the company's annual WWDC in June, with the software expected to be "Deeply integrated" into the upcoming milestone releases of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia. According to yesterday's report, we can expect these features to make it to each platform in October.

Should this information hold true, Apple users won't receive the much anticipated Apple Intelligence features when this year's operating system (OS) updates go live for iPhone, iPad, and Mac platforms.

While there's no official date for when we can expect the OS updates to take place, we can take an educated guess based on Apple's previous release patterns. With prior iOS, iPadOS, and macOS releases in mind, September is highly likely to be Apple's release window of choice.

Failing that, another familiar release window to Apple would be October, which could line up well with reported Apple Intelligence delays. However, there's no indication that Apple is willing to push back the launch of its operating system updates to release in tandem with its AI features.

iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia: Apple Intelligence in testing

Apple's OS updates may be a few months away from their official launch, but that doesn't mean you'll have to wait all that long until you can try these features out for yourself ahead of time.

The first batch of Apple Intelligence features will reportedly head for testing as early as this week, as part of Apple's latest round of developer betas. A second public beta is expected within the week (with the initial public beta launching earlier this month), though it may lack the same Apple Intelligence features.

However, a third public beta scheduled for early August is likely to sport some early Apple Intelligence features, with potentially more to be seen across a series of weekly updates throughout the remainder of the month.

Interested in trialing Apple Intelligence ahead of its full release? You can sign up for these early beta tests at the Apple Beta Software Program website. Once you've registered, simply open up one of your devices and head toward the Software Update menu before selecting Beta Updates and choosing the appropriate option for your platform.

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Rael Hornby
Content Editor

Rael Hornby, potentially influenced by far too many LucasArts titles at an early age, once thought he’d grow up to be a mighty pirate. However, after several interventions with close friends and family members, you’re now much more likely to see his name attached to the bylines of tech articles. While not maintaining a double life as an aspiring writer by day and indie game dev by night, you’ll find him sat in a corner somewhere muttering to himself about microtransactions or hunting down promising indie games on Twitter.