Apple Intelligence in iOS 18.2: A Deep Dive into Working with Siri and ChatGPT, Together

The ChatGPT integration in iOS 18.2.

The ChatGPT integration in iOS 18.2.

Apple is releasing iOS and iPadOS 18.2 today, and with those software updates, the company is rolling out the second wave of Apple Intelligence features as part of their previously announced roadmap that will culminate with the arrival of deeper integration between Siri and third-party apps next year.

In today’s release, users will find native integration between Siri and ChatGPT, more options in Writing Tools, a smarter Mail app with automatic message categorization, generative image creation in Image Playground, Genmoji, Visual Intelligence, and more. It’s certainly a more ambitious rollout than the somewhat disjointed debut of Apple Intelligence with iOS 18.1, and one that will garner more attention if only by virtue of Siri’s native access to OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

And yet, despite the long list of AI features in these software updates, I find myself mostly underwhelmed – if not downright annoyed – by the majority of the Apple Intelligence changes, but not for the reasons you may expect coming from me.

Some context is necessary here. As I explained in a recent episode of AppStories, I’ve embarked on a bit of a journey lately in terms of understanding the role of AI products and features in modern software. I’ve been doing a lot of research, testing, and reading about the different flavors of AI tools that we see pop up on almost a daily basis now in a rapidly changing landscape. As I discussed on the show, I’ve landed on two takeaways, at least for now:

  • I’m completely uninterested in generative products that aim to produce images, video, or text to replace human creativity and input. I find products that create fake “art” sloppy, distasteful, and objectively harmful for humankind because they aim to replace the creative process with a thoughtless approximation of what it means to be creative and express one’s feelings, culture, and craft through genuine, meaningful creative work.
  • I’m deeply interested in the idea of assistive and agentic AI as a means to remove busywork from people’s lives and, well, assist people in the creative process. In my opinion, this is where the more intriguing parts of the modern AI industry lie:
    • agents that can perform boring tasks for humans with a higher degree of precision and faster output;
    • coding assistants to put software in the hands of more people and allow programmers to tackle higher-level tasks;
    • RAG-infused assistive tools that can help academics and researchers; and
    • protocols that can map an LLM to external data sources such as Claude’s Model Context Protocol.

I see these tools as a natural evolution of automation and, as you can guess, that has inevitably caught my interest. The implications for the Accessibility community in this field are also something we should keep in mind.

To put it more simply, I think empowering LLMs to be “creative” with the goal of displacing artists is a mistake, and also a distraction – a glossy facade largely amounting to a party trick that gets boring fast and misses the bigger picture of how these AI tools may practically help us in the workplace, healthcare, biology, and other industries.

This is how I approached my tests with Apple Intelligence in iOS and iPadOS 18.2. For the past month, I’ve extensively used Claude to assist me with the making of advanced shortcuts, used ChatGPT’s search feature as a Google replacement, indexed the archive of my iOS reviews with NotebookLM, relied on Zapier’s Copilot to more quickly spin up web automations, and used both Sonnet 3.5 and GPT-4o to rethink my Obsidian templating system and note-taking workflow. I’ve used AI tools for real, meaningful work that revolved around me – the creative person – doing the actual work and letting software assist me. And at the same time, I tried to add Apple’s new AI features to the mix.

Perhaps it’s not “fair” to compare Apple’s newfangled efforts to products by companies that have been iterating on their LLMs and related services for the past five years, but when the biggest tech company in the world makes bold claims about their entrance into the AI space, we have to take them at face value.

It’s been an interesting exercise to see how far behind Apple is compared to OpenAI and Anthropic in terms of the sheer capabilities of their respective assistants; at the same time, I believe Apple has some serious advantages in the long term as the platform owner, with untapped potential for integrating AI more deeply within the OS and apps in a way that other AI companies won’t be able to. There are parts of Apple Intelligence in 18.2 that hint at much bigger things to come in the future that I find exciting, as well as features available today that I’ve found useful and, occasionally, even surprising.

With this context in mind, in this story you won’t see any coverage of Image Playground and Image Wand, which I believe are ridiculously primitive and perfect examples of why Apple may think they’re two years behind their competitors. Image Playground in particular produces “illustrations” that you’d be kind to call abominations; they remind me of the worst Midjourney creations from 2022. Instead, I will focus on the more assistive aspects of AI and share my experience with trying to get work done using Apple Intelligence on my iPhone and iPad alongside its integration with ChatGPT, which is the marquee addition of this release.

Let’s dive in.

Read more


Apple Announces the 2024 App Store Awards

iPhone App of the Year winner Kino. Source: Apple.

iPhone App of the Year winner Kino. Source: Apple.

Apple has revealed its annual App Store Awards winners, recognizing the standout apps and games of 2024. This year, the company picked a collection of apps and games from 17 developers across 12 categories, including new categories for the Vision Pro App and Game of the Year.

Apple CEO Tim Cook had this to say about this year’s winning developers:

We are thrilled to honor this impressive group of developers who are harnessing the power of Apple devices and technology to deliver experiences that enrich the lives of users and have a profound impact on their communities. The remarkable achievements of this year’s winners demonstrate the incredible ingenuity that can be unlocked through apps.

This year’s App Store Award winners are:

iPad App of the Year winner Moises. Source: Apple.

iPad App of the Year winner Moises. Source: Apple.

Apps

  • iPhone App of the YearKino, from Lux Optics, Inc. 
  • iPad App of the Year: Moises, from Moises Systems, Inc. 
  • Mac App of the Year: Adobe Lightroom, from Adobe, Inc. 
  • Apple Vision Pro App of the Year: What If…? An Immersive Story, from Disney
  • Apple Watch App of the Year: Lumy, from Raja V.
  • Apple TV App of the Year: F1 TV, from Formula One Digital Media Limited
Mac Game of the Year winner Thank Goodness You’re Here! Source: Apple

Mac Game of the Year winner Thank Goodness You’re Here! Source: Apple

Games

Cultural Impact winner Oko. Source: Apple.

Cultural Impact winner Oko. Source: Apple.

Apple also honored the following Cultural Impact winners:

I had a chance to meet with the developers of three winning apps: Thrasher, Oko, and Moises. I wasn’t familiar with any of these apps before my meetings, but every one of them struck a chord with me, and I can see why Apple included them in their awards.

Thrasher takes advantage of the Vision Pro’s many sensors to create a uniquely immersive visual and musical experience. Oko uses the iPhone’s cameras to help low-vision and blind users navigate busy cities safely and independently. Moises leverages AI to break down music in a way that helps musicians practice and improve their skills. They’re all very different apps, but each pushes Apple’s devices in its own way to elevate their users’ daily lives whether it’s improving their skills, helping them through their daily lives, or entertaining them during a moment of downtime.

Congratulations to all of this year’s App Store Award winners. It’s always great to see developers’ hard work and contributions to Apple’s platforms recognized.


iOS and iPadOS 18.2: Everything New Besides Apple Intelligence

Today, Apple is releasing iOS and iPadOS 18.2, the second major updates to the iPhone and iPad’s latest operating system versions. Once again, this release’s main highlight is a wave of new Apple Intelligence features that are now available to the public. And just like in October, we’re covering these new AI features separately in a special story for MacStories readers. Be sure to check out Federico’s story, which goes over the new Apple Intelligence features included in iOS and iPadOS 18.2.

But besides another batch of Apple Intelligence features, this release also includes a series of changes to the system, from updates to Safari, Find My, and Photos to the arrival of new system-wide settings for Default Apps and more. Here’s a roundup of everything new besides Apple Intelligence in iOS and iPadOS 18.2.

Read more


The Latest from AppStories and Ruminate

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:

AppStories

This week, Federico and John reveal the winners of the 2024 MacStories Selects Awards, which celebrate the exceptional design, innovation, and creativity of apps across the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch.


Ruminate

Snackfishing, digital chicken pets, AI video. Plus adorable 3D-printed Mac Mini enclosures.

  • Pika: Use code RUMINATE20 for 20% off your first year of Pika Pro.

Read more


The MacStories 2024 Year in Review on Flipboard

I vividly remember when Flipboard first debuted in 2010, kicking off the iPad digital magazine trend that spawned Apple Newsstand, The Daily, Zite and more. Of all those early publications, Flipboard remains, and it just so happens that because we published the MacStories RSS feed to Flipboard early, the site has a larger following there than you might expect.

Over the years, we lost track of Flipboard, but a steadily growing segment of our readership turned to it as a way of reading our work. Then, late last year, Flipboard grabbed our attention again with its forward-thinking push into federation. MacStories was among the earliest to federate our Flipboard presence, which has only increased the number of readers discovering MacStories through it.

So today, we thought we’d test the Flipboard waters further with a collection of 205 of the biggest stories, reviews, and news posts we’ve published in 2024. The MacStories 2024 Year in Review collects our best work in one place. It’s a great way to catch up on stories you didn’t have time to read earlier in the year or browse through and revisit 2024’s biggest stories in the Apple world. We hope you enjoy it.

If you’re a Flipboard reader and would like to see more collections like the MacStories 2024 Year in Review, please let me know on Mastodon, Threads, or Bluesky. I’d love to hear what you think.

Permalink

Celebrate the MacStories Selects App of the Year with the MacStories DS Skins for Delta

This year’s MacStories Selects App of the Year was never in question. No app has had a bigger political, cultural, and competitive impact on the App Store this year than Delta. On top of that, Delta is a beautifully designed, native app that takes advantage of Apple’s latest technologies, putting it head and shoulders above other iOS emulators. Of course, Delta is also a delightfully fun way to relive classic videogames on the iPhone’s outstanding hardware.

Delta’s impact on the app world this year transcended retro gaming. However, for most people, being able to dip into the world of Pokémon or battle their way through the dungeons of Hyrule on the device they carry with them is all the payoff they need.

That’s why, to celebrate Delta’s many accomplishments in 2024, we commissioned three Delta skins for Nintendo DS games from Sean Fletcher, a Seattle-based designer who has created dozens of Delta skins that pay homage to classic Nintendo hardware. The MacStories DS Skins, which incorporate MacStories’ signature colors and a subtle logo, work in portrait and landscape orientations and are available for $3 on our Gumroad store. As Nintendo’s first touchscreen device, we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate Delta’s emergence as an emulation powerhouse on the iPhone than with skins for the DS.

The MacStories DS Skins for Delta.

The MacStories DS Skins for Delta.

With the rise of generative AI and the decline of search engines, we’ve made a point of working with as many writers, artists, musicians, developers, and now, designers as possible this year. The fact that Delta enables anyone to make skins for its app allowed us to work with Sean, another talented creative professional, whose work we’ve supported personally and linked to in the past. If you like the MacStories DS Skins, be sure to check out Sean’s other skins, too.

We’re delighted with how the MacStories DS Skins turned out and hope you love them, too. We can’t wait to see screenshots of what you’re playing with them.

Permalink

MacStories Selects 2024: Recognizing the Best Apps of the Year

John: 2024 was a big year for apps, but it was also different from most. More often than not, app innovation is driven by new Apple APIs; that wasn’t the case this year. Instead, it was other trends that shaped the apps we love.

Artificial intelligence played a big role, with some apps adopting it in clever ways to reduce user friction while other developers reacted to it by adopting a more human-centric, creative approach. The rapidly evolving social media landscape played a part, too, with new ways to communicate and manage our timelines emerging.

However, the biggest driver of change in the world of apps this year was government regulation led by the European Commission. The full effects of the Digital Markets Act and the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust action against Apple have yet to play out, but nothing since the introduction of the App Store has shaken up the status quo like governments in the EU, U.S., and elsewhere did in 2024.

Not all regulatory effects were what developers wanted – or even positive – but as 2024 winds down, it’s undeniable that apps that weren’t possible before regulation are now available worldwide. Plus, developers in certain parts of the world have more options than before, which we at MacStories are happy to see as fans of apps and their makers. Let’s hope the opening up of the App Store continues and spreads geographically in 2025 and beyond.

Change lingers in the air, which makes me excited for the apps that 2025 will bring, but before we shut off the lights on 2024, it’s time to pause as we do each year to reflect on the many apps we tried in the year gone by and recognize the best among them.

Like last year, the MacStories team picked the best apps in seven categories:

  • Best New App
  • Best App Update
  • Best New Feature
  • Best Watch App
  • Best Mac App
  • Best Design
  • App of the Year

Club MacStories members were part of the selection process, too, picking the winner of the MacStories Selects Readers’ Choice Award. And as we’ve done the past few years, we named a Lifetime Achievement Award winner that has stood the test of time and had an outsized impact on the world of apps. This year’s winner, which joins past winners Pixelmator, PCalc, and Drafts, is the subject of a special story Niléane wrote for the occasion.

As usual, Federico and I also recorded a special episode of AppStories covering all the winners and runners-up. It’s a terrific way to learn more about this year’s apps. Plus, it’s on our YouTube channel this year, giving you a chance to actually see the awards as we cover them.

You can also listen to the episode below.

0:00
55:19

And with that, it’s my pleasure to unveil the 2024 MacStories Selects Awards.

Read more


The MacStories Selects 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award

Transit

Earlier this year, I took the time to step back from the tech news cycle and reflect on one of my favorite iPhone apps of all time, Transit. For the past decade and more — Transit first launched in 2012 — the app has been a powerful way to plan trips and look up waiting times when traveling around your hometown using public transportation. But the team behind Transit has never stopped enhancing and improving the app. Today, Transit remains one of the best transit apps on the iPhone, and it’s not even close; not only that, but the app has also slowly but surely cemented itself as a staple of UI design in this category.

I started relying on Transit in 2014, when I first arrived in France. At the time, I had never experienced a massive public transit network like the one in Paris, and I specifically remember how overwhelming it all felt. Finding Transit in the App Store truly felt like a godsend for 18-year-old me.

When it was first released, the app focused on one key feature: as soon as you tapped its icon on the Home Screen, it would immediately give you real-time waiting times for bus and train stops all around you, wherever you were in the city. Unlike with its competitors, you didn’t need to tap around the UI to find the stop or train line you were looking for; in all likelihood, the information you were looking for was already there, right on the app’s main screen. Instead of trying to play the retention game and keep you in the app as long as it could, Transit was designed to be launched and dismissed again just a few seconds later, as soon as you got a glance at the waiting times on its main screen.

This basic foundation immediately made Transit relevant at any time of the day. It also explains why, over the past ten years, I’ve never once removed the app’s icon from my Home Screen. In fact, it’s hard for me to imagine my Home Screen setup without Transit.

Transit lets you compare itineraries on a timeline and presents you with a detailed breakdown of each itinerary.

Transit lets you compare itineraries on a timeline and presents you with a detailed breakdown of each itinerary.

Today, in addition to checking waiting times, the app also lets you plan itineraries and compare trips, and it can track your vehicle to alert you when you’re about to reach your destination so you don’t miss your stop — all of this across 741 cities and regions in 23 countries. If this sounds like a lot, just know that at every step along the way, the app is always graced with a thoughtful design that never makes any part of it feel overwhelming. Every single data point has been carefully placed in the interface and is introduced with beautiful and subtle animations.

When I try to think of apps that started strong so many years ago and only evolved to become stronger, there are just a few names that come to mind. Transit is one of those names.

Transit's Live Activities are a perfect use case for the feature. They let you keep track of your trip and alert you when you're about to reach your destination.

Transit’s Live Activities are a perfect use case for the feature. They let you keep track of your trip and alert you when you’re about to reach your destination.

One of the reasons the app has been able to achieve this is its ability to gracefully adopt Apple’s new system APIs in iOS every year. This was especially true in iOS 16 with Live Activities, which allow you to track your trip and keep an eye on your next stop right from your iPhone’s Lock Screen. And just last month, the Transit team went beyond our expectations, revealing an impressive new way to track your train when it’s underground and you don’t have a GPS signal. The app now utilizes the iPhone’s built-in accelerometer and analyzes its patterns to identify when your vehicle is in motion and every time it reaches a new station. I’ve been able to try this new feature over the past month in the tunnels of the Paris Métro, and I’m happy to report that this wizardry actually works.

In November 2024, Transit added a prediction model that allows it to track your train underground without GPS, using only the iPhone's accelerometer.

In November 2024, Transit added a prediction model that allows it to track your train underground without GPS, using only the iPhone’s accelerometer.

The Transit team’s ability to innovate and expand to more regions around the world, all while keeping the app focused on the main feature set that it launched with 12 years ago, is remarkable. For that, and the app’s ever-beautiful design, Transit deserves to be recognized with this year’s MacStories Selects Lifetime Achievement Award.

Learn more about Transit:


The Latest from Comfort Zone, Magic Rays of Light, and MacStories Unwind

Enjoy the latest episodes from MacStories’ family of podcasts:

Comfort Zone

Niléane has taken to the skies in Flight Simulator, Chris wants to talk about yet another Mac, and the gang all looks for the best open source app (or web app!) they can find.


Magic Rays of Light

Sigmund and Devon preview the new features coming in tvOS 18.2. Then, they recap the first German-language Apple Original series, Where’s Wanda?, and Spanish-language medical drama series Midnight Family.


MacStories Unwind

This week on MacStories Unwind, we kick off the first of our annual ‘best of’ Unwind recaps with the best music releases of 2024.

Read more