Apple turns its AI on by default in latest software update

The updates, iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3 and macOS Sequoia 15.3, also disable AI summaries for news apps, which have gained a reputation for twisting news push notifications to display inaccurate facts.

The release is a milestone in the rollout of Apple Intelligence, the company’s suite of artificial intelligence features. Apple Intelligence is a critical product for Apple as it seeks to distinguish its products from competitors with an AI system integrated into iPhones and its other products.

While Apple Intelligence is already featured in the company’s marketing for the latest iPhones, the rollout has been deliberate and limited. Apple says that is to allow it to test new features and make sure it has enough server capacity. The entire Apple Intelligence suite is still officially in beta, and it’s only available in a handful of English-speaking countries.

Apple’s move to turn Apple Intelligence on by default is a step towards a more complete rollout of the feature. Previously, users with supported iPhones — models that were released in 2024 as well as 2023 “Pro” level models — were prompted to turn on Apple Intelligence when setting up their phone, a process that included downloading AI models from the internet and some installation.

With the latest updates, Apple Intelligence will be turned on by default when the latest software update is installed, expanding the number of users who are exposed to the software. Apple Intelligence is marketed as being able to rewrite text, generate images and summarize long emails and message threads.

“For users new or upgrading to iOS 18.3, Apple Intelligence will be enabled automatically during iPhone onboarding,” Apple said in the developer release notes for the update.

Users will have to navigate to the Apple Intelligence page in the Settings app to turn it off, according to Apple.

The latest software update also includes one of the most notable example so far of Apple rolling back an AI feature after it generated controversy and subpar results. Apple joins Google and Microsoft as companies that were forced to roll back new AI features after it generated harmful content or “hallucinations” that weren’t based in reality.

Apple Intelligence can take stacks of notifications and simplify them into a three-sentence notification. However, the BBC and other news outlets discovered in December that the feature can twist news headlines into inaccurate information.

Earlier this month, Apple’s system conflated notifications from BBC’s sports app to say that “Brazilian tennis player, Rafael Nadal, comes out as gay.” Nadal is Spanish and is married to Maria Francisca Perello.

The latest update disables Apple Intelligence for news and entertainment apps. Apple Intelligence also has been updated to show any notifications generated by its AI in italics, signifying which notifications are created by generative AI and which were pushed by the app itself.

“We’re pleased that Apple has listened to our concerns and is pausing the summarization feature for news,” a BBC spokesperson told CNBC.

Apple told CNBC earlier this month that its notification summaries for news apps would return in a future update.

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