The wait for the first wave of Apple Intelligence features is nearly over. In reports that profile Apple’s upcoming AirPods Pro 2 Hearing Aid feature by The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) and The Verge, Apple confirmed that iOS 18.1 will become available to the general public next week.
Apple revealed its Apple Intelligence features at WWDC this past June. Apple Intelligence is Apple’s feature set that uses AI technology, which will be released in waves throughout the year. The first set of features included in iOS 18.1 include AI writing tools, a new and improved Siri, summaries for Mail and Safari, and a clean-up tool in Photos. Learn more about the Apple Intelligence release schedule and features.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported two weeks ago that Apple will release iOS 18.1 on October 28. The release candidate of iOS 18.1 was released on Monday, October 21. While the reports do not mention iPadOS 18.1 or macOS Sequoia 15.1, their release candidates were also released, a likely indication that they will also be officially released next week.
The AirPods Pro 2 Hearing Aid update will become available as a firmware update for the earphones. iOS 18.1 includes the software required to use the Hearing Aid feature and the Hearing Aid Test. Learn more about the Hearing Aid features in the AirPods Pro 2.
During the beta cycle for iOS 18.1, new features that were being tested included sleep apnea detection, drag-and-drop support for iPhone Mirroring, new Control Center controls, and other non-AI features. Those features will likely be included in iOS 18.1, but Apple has occasionally withdrawn features at the last minute to perform more testing and release it later.
Author: Roman Loyola, Senior Editor, Macworld
Roman is a Macworld Senior Editor with over 30 years of experience covering the tech industry, focusing on the Mac and other products in the Apple ecosystem. He is also the host of the Macworld Podcast. His career started at MacUser, where he received Apple certification as a repair technician (when Apple did that kind of thing). He's also worked for MacAddict, MacLife, and TechTV.