A New Era for Apple – Apple Intelligence 

Apple’s iPhone 16  “Apple Intelligence – AI for the rest of us – Coming in beta this fall” (Apple Inc.) (Courtesy/Apple)

On Monday, Sept. 9, Apple joined the ranks of Samsung and Google by introducing the new iPhone 16 with an artificial intelligence system branded as Apple Intelligence.

“I think Apple is re-inventing their classic designs with the iPhone 16,” said Jefferson Ogbuka, a student at Howard University and iPhone user. 

During the showcase event, Apple introduced updated models of the Apple Watch, which features thinner watches with larger display screens. They also announced the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation capabilities. Their biggest announcement regarding the new iPhone 16 and 16 Pro models.

The highlight of the event was the unveiling of Apple Intelligence, which brings new features such as writing tools to help users edit emails and messages, custom-generated images and a significantly improved Siri—Apple’s virtual assistant, with richer language understanding capabilities. 

When unveiling Apple Intelligence at the event, Apple CEO, Tim Cook, said these advancements, “Mark the beginning of an exciting new era.” 

Anthony Cohen, a technical specialist at Apple talked about Apple’s new AI features impact on users.

“I feel the integration of AI will be extremely beneficial for our users,” said Cohen.  “As it provides many key features such as email personalization for business or personal needs, allowing the emotion of the email to be modified, or even writing papers if you’re met with writer’s block.” 

While specialists like Cohen are optimistic, some users like Alexa Ryan, a student at Howard University, are more skeptical about the real impact of AI.

“In terms of changing the user experience, I don’t think it is going to be a drastic change to what we currently have on the market,” said Ryan 

Nevertheless, there are still a few features users are looking forward to. 

“I don’t use [Siri] because her interface is poor, but I would consider using her if there are significant improvements in her capabilities, which is what I believe this Apple intelligence is seeking to do,” Ryan added. 

In the realm of AI in smartphones, Apple is late to the game. Samsung, Apple’s top competitor, announced new AI smartphones in January of 2024 and Google announced its AI features in October of 2023. Now that Apple has finally caught up to the trend, a new era of AI-driven devices is on the horizon.

“AI implementation will [cover] needs some may not yet know they need covered!” said Cohen. “From a personal perspective, AI is just a best friend in your pocket.”

Apple plans to release a beta version of its first set of Apple intelligence features in the coming month with more updates to follow.