Apple is set to postpone the release of its new artificial intelligence features, missing the initial launch of its upcoming iPhone and iPad software updates, according to a report by Bloomberg News.

The technology giant now plans to introduce Apple Intelligence to customers through software updates by October, a few weeks after the planned September release of iOS 18 and iPadOS 18, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. This delay will give Apple additional time to address potential bugs and ensure a smoother user experience.

In an unusual move, Apple intends to make Apple Intelligence available to software developers for early testing as soon as this week via iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1 beta versions. This strategy deviates from Apple's typical approach of releasing previews of follow-up updates closer to the public release of the new software generation.

The delay means that the first iPhone 16 models shipped to consumers this year may lack the new AI features, requiring a software update weeks after purchase. Apple Intelligence encompasses a range of capabilities, including prioritisation of key notifications, web page and voice note summaries, writing improvement tools, a revamped Siri, and integration of OpenAI's ChatGPT.

Even when Apple Intelligence launches with iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1, some features will still be missing. These include significant changes to Siri, such as the ability to use on-device data for queries and utilise screen content for contextual answers.

Apple plans to roll out its complete set of Apple Intelligence features through multiple updates to iOS 18 from late 2024 through the first half of 2025. The company is banking on Apple Intelligence to compete in the burgeoning generative AI space and potentially drive sales of new iPhones, as the upcoming iPhone 16 line will reportedly have minimal design changes.

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