===== Is Apple paving the way for a more comprehensive launch of AI features? Software updates will enable artificial intelligence by default. =====

On January 27th, Monday, Apple released operating system updates for mobile phones, tablets, and computers, including iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, and macOS Sequoia 15.3, with the main feature being the default activation of the Apple Intelligence AI function on applicable devices.

Analysts say this marks a step towards Apple's comprehensive rollout of AI features, as Apple Intelligence can now reach more users. Previously, users were asked whether to enable AI during system setup; now, users must manually disable it, or else AI will be activated automatically.

Apple's stock price rose against the backdrop of declining European and American tech stocks, increasing by over 4% at its peak, reclaiming its position as the world's largest company by market capitalization.

Other new features include:

"Visual Intelligence" on iPhone can extract information from posters or flyers, add events to the calendar app, and more easily identify plants and animals;

The new system update will display AI-generated notification summaries in italics to distinguish them from notifications pushed by the app itself, and users can manage notification summaries while the screen is locked;

Mac computers have added support for Genmoji, allowing users to create custom Genmoji based on text descriptions and characters from their photo library.

A significant feature of this update is that Apple has "paused the allowance" for AI to summarize notifications from news and entertainment applications, possibly waiting for the next update to fix bugs before reopening this feature. Previously, media outlets found factual errors in the AI-generated notification summaries. Earlier, Google and Microsoft were also forced to retract related features after their new AI functions produced harmful content or "hallucinations" not based on reality.

Additionally, some analysts believe this operating system update is relatively minor, with significant changes expected in the next system update, iOS/iPadOS 18.4 and macOS 15.4, which is anticipated to be released in late March or early April this year. At that time, enhancements to Siri may be made through increased screen awareness and integration with third-party applications.

For users who do not wish to have Apple AI features enabled by default, they need to go to "Settings" and select "Apple Intelligence and Siri" to disable AI. Previously, some websites reported that Apple Intelligence now requires about 7GB of storage space, nearly doubling from the initial 4GB, and that storage space will not be automatically restored immediately after disabling AI.

Although Apple Intelligence is a highly anticipated flagship product, it is still in the official testing phase and is only available in a few English-speaking countries and regions. Apple states that this is to test the new features and ensure sufficient server capacity Currently, Apple devices that support AI features include the iPhone 16 series released in 2024, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max released in 2023, any iPad Pro, iPad Air, and Mac computers equipped with Apple's self-developed M1 chip or higher, as well as the latest iPad mini equipped with the A17 Pro chip