Good news — paying for Apple Intelligence could still be three years away
Apple Intelligence +?
Were you worried about rumors of Apple charging for Apple Intelligence? Well, there’s some good news: Apple Intelligence+ features might not be coming until at least 2027.
In his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has estimated that premium paid Apple Intelligence features won’t be coming to Apple’s best iPhones and other products for at least three years.
He said, “It may take time for Apple to actually execute on it. Apple Intelligence’s existing features are still so nascent that I’d bet it will take three years for Apple to develop something worth charging for,” following up from rumors last week that Apple would charge for the AI features in the future.
Apple Intelligence is set to arrive with iOS 18.1 in October following the release of iOS 18 and iPhone 16. The new AI-powered features include summarizing tools, proofreading, and rewriting as well as Image Playground and Genmoji to generate images directly from the operating system.
More to come for Apple Intelligence
Next year, Apple Intelligence will improve with the addition of Siri 2.0, the next generation of the voice assistant that is not only far more capable but is also aware of personal context and what’s on your device’s screen.
With rumors of paid Apple Intelligence features in the future, we expect to see Apple continuously build on the fundamentals of its artificial intelligence throughout the course of the next few years.
Charging for more capable AI models and features is nothing new, ChatGPT currently offers a Plus service for $19.99/month. Those premium features include access to GPT-4, the ability to generate images with DALL-E, and use, create, and share custom GPTs.
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If Apple were to take this approach we could see a new LLM built to rival ChatGPT’s chatbot capabilities, allowing subscribers to use Apple’s own powerful models instead of accessing ChatGPT through Siri.
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John-Anthony Disotto is the Editor of iMore, helping you get the most from your Apple products and fixing things when your technology isn't behaving itself.
Based in Scotland, where he worked as a Genius Bar technician repairing iPhones, John-Anthony has used the Apple ecosystem for over a decade and prides himself on closing his Apple Watch activity rings.
He leads iMore's work on AI in the newsroom, testing where it genuinely improves editorial work and where it doesn't. Every story is written, edited, and signed off by a person.
Previously in editorial at TechRadar and Tom's Guide, John-Anthony is an avid film geek who won the Edinburgh International Film Festival Student Critics award in 2019. Away from Apple, he tinkers with game emulation and Linux on his Steam Deck.