Apple is injecting some serious AI power into the iPhone camera app with the upcoming iOS 18 update, making it easier than ever to get contextual help and edit your photos.
Previously, accessing Siri's Visual Intelligence — which functions like Google Lens by identifying objects and providing relevant information — required a specific button press. Now, this powerful AI feature is directly integrated into the camera interface, promising a more seamless user experience for tasks like adding event details to your calendar or identifying flora and fauna.
This move aligns with Apple's broader push into AI-powered assistive tech, potentially paving the way for similar computer-vision capabilities in future products like smart glasses or AirPods with integrated cameras.
Beyond the camera's real-time assistance, iOS 18 also introduces several AI-driven enhancements to the Photos app. The 'Clean Up' tool, designed to remove unwanted elements, is getting a significant boost from updated AI models, enabling more realistic scene reconstruction. A new 'Extend' feature leverages generative AI to expand image borders, offering more breathing room in shots where subjects are too close to the edge, a feature similar to what's available on Google's Pixel phones.
Additionally, 'Spatial Reframing' allows users to subtly alter a photo's perspective by dragging their finger across the image. Generative AI is employed here as well to fill in any resulting gaps, though it remains to be seen if this feature will be exclusive to certain iPhone models.
