Six ways Apple Intelligence levels up with iOS 18.2 and macOS 15.2

The latest tranche of AI features is a massive upgrade.

- BY JASON CROSS

Apple Intelligence isn't a thing, it's several things that Apple is releasing piecemeal over the course of several iOS, iPadOS, and macOS updates. It started with iOS 18.1, but aside from some neat writing tools, the really good stuff didn't arrive until recently. With iOS 18.2 (fave.co/4gJYj4E), your iPhone has quite a few new useful features and improvements powered by Apple Intelligence, and gives you a much better idea of where Apple is going with its Al vision. The features introduced in iOS 18.1 were just the start; these are all the big ways Apple Intelligence (fave.co/4d8uxoF) levels up in iOS 18.2 and macOS 15.2.

1. IMAGE PLAYGROUND IS APPLE'S DALL-E

With the iOS and iPadOS 18.2 and macOS 15.2 updates, you'll find a new app installed on your devices: Image Playground. Like DALL-E and other Al image generators, it allows you to create Al-made images by typing a description or using a variety of selected settings, objects, and modifiers. You can opt to draw in either animation or illustration styles, but it's very limited in both scope and quality, probably to avoid any potential for trying to trick anyone. But you can select people from your Photos library to use a subject, which is kind of fun.

You can use the Image Playground engine in the Notes app with a new Image Wand, too. It can make a new image from a description or surrounding text, or take a rough sketch and flesh it out. Anywhere you can draw an image in Notes, just select the new Magic Wand tool at the right and circle the blank area or rough sketch you wish to replace with an Al-generated one.