When will iOS 18.1 and Apple Intelligence be released?

Apple has just announced the long-awaited update to the iPad Mini, which now features an A17 Pro processor capable of running the upcoming Apple Intelligence features that the company announced at its WWDC developer event earlier this year and during the Launch of the iPhone 16 in September. Apple is certainly feeling the pressure Google, Meta and every high-tech company that has added an “AI” slide to its pitch deck to incorporate more generative AI capabilities into its products.

But when will that happen?

Apple, as is usual, is notoriously secretive about certain details. This means we can make our educated guesses based on what we already know.

When will iOS 18.1 be generally released?

Apple said during its September event that the first AI features will be available in beta form “next month.” Now that we're halfway through October, some signs point to a release before the calendar turns to November.

Developers or people participating in Apple's public beta program can now install pre-release versions of iOS 18.1 and sign up to test Apple Intelligence. (The technology will also run on iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1, but I'm using iOS 18.1 as a shorthand for all three. As always, be smart about what you get into.)

The latest developer beta is the seventh revision, which usually indicates that Apple is close to releasing it. The most accurate information is a rumor from frequent Apple watcher Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, who says the first Apple Intelligence features will be available Oct 28.

There were also rumors of an Apple hardware event at the end of October, but in the same newsletter Gurman now weighs in November 1st Date of launch of new M4-based laptops, a redesigned M4 Mac Mini and an M4 iMac. He also marked that date for a new iPad mini, which Apple announced this week and will begin shipping on October 23rd.

The outlier here is that Apple's product pages currently all refer to Apple Intelligence coming “this fall,” which could indicate that the schedule has slipped out of October. However, I remain optimistic and still believe October is a real possibility.

Check this out: The iPhone wasn't the star of the iPhone 16 event

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What devices runs Apple Intelligence?

Remember that Apple Intelligence only works with the following models equipped with A17 Pro or higher (iPhone and iPad Mini) and M1 or higher (Mac and iPad) processors:

• iPhone 15 Pro
• iPhone 15 Pro Max
• iPhone 16
• iPhone 16 Plus
• iPhone 16 Pro
• iPhone 16 Pro Max
• iPad Mini (late 2024)
• iPad Air (M1 and later)
• iPad Pro (M1 and later)
• iPad (M1 and above)
• Mac computers with Apple Silicon (M series)

Read more: Before iOS 18.1 arrives, check out these 9 hidden iOS 18 features and how to remove annoying banners and other distractions in Safari.