One of Apple’s biggest new features this year is the arrival of its new ecosystem of artificial intelligence features, Apple Intelligence. The company presented everything its AI can do during the WWDC 2024 developer conference, and these features will be available starting this year, in a future iOS 18 update.
However, Apple Intelligence will not be available in Europe due to the regulations of the European territory’s Digital Markets Act. Still, all is not lost, or so it seems. Apple’s artificial intelligence could arrive in the European Union first on Macs, and not on iPhones.
Apple Intelligence may only be available on Mac, at least initially
Apple’s AI will first be coming exclusively to the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, and will only be available in English, so to try out AI early we need to change the iPhone language and Apple ID region to the United States. However, this is not possible in Europe.
Apple has completely blocked access to Apple Intelligence in Europe until further notice. However, the patch notes for the latest iOS 18.1 developer beta seem to imply that Apple Intelligence is coming to Europe, but only on Mac, as discovered and reported by 9to5Mac.
The iOS 18.1 developer beta update notes mention that Apple Intelligence will not be available in Europe or China, while the macOS Sequoia 15.1 beta notes mention that AI will only be unavailable in China.
iOS 18.1:
Apple Intelligence is available on iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. Apple Intelligence is not currently available in the European Union or China.
macOS Sequoia 15.1:
Apple Intelligence is available on Macs with M1 and later. Apple Intelligence is not currently available in China.
The omission of the European Union from the macOS Sequoia 15.1 beta notes could indicate that Apple Intelligence will indeed be available on compatible Mac and MacBook models in Europe. So far, Digital Markets Act regulations have forced Apple to make changes to the iPhone and iOS, such as replacing the Lightning port with USB-C and opening the door to third-party app stores. In theory, Apple Intelligence’s arrival on Macs shouldn’t be restricted by the DMA.
Unfortunately for users, it’s also possible that these beta release notes will change and the final version of macOS Sequoia won’t include Apple Intelligence. We’ll have to wait and see.
Finally, it’s also worth remembering that Apple recently confirmed that they are working on bringing Apple Intelligence to users in Europe. It’s very likely that Apple’s AI will reach iPhone users in European countries, although it may take longer to reach them than in other territories.
Cover image | Apple