Photo Credit: Doz Gabrial
Apple Music introduced a library of artwork for users to choose from to customize a playlist, and now AI-generated images appear to be on the horizon.
Apple’s iOS 17.1 update saw the introduction of a library of artwork from which users can select an image to customize a playlist in Apple Music. Now, 9to5Mac has discovered code snippets indicating the company will integrate his feature into Apple Intelligence with iOS 18.
According to 9to5Mac, code in the iOS 18 beta 4 reveals that Apple is working on a new feature to let users create playlist artwork using AI for their Apple Music playlists. The code suggests there will be a “Create Image” button when editing a playlist, that will invoke Image Playground, part of Apple Intelligence’s toolset.
Apple first teased Image Playground at WWDC 2024, showing users able to write commands to generate new images with AI assistance. The AI-generated images can have various art styles, but there is notably no option for generating a photorealistic image. It seems that Apple Music will likely ask the user what they want the playlist artwork to look like and then generate a few options from which they can choose.
Currently, the feature is still under development. Like other Apple Intelligence features, it’s not yet available to beta users. The company said some Apple Intelligence features will be available in beta sometime this summer, but now those mentions have been removed from Apple’s website.
iOS 18 releases this fall, with a beta preview available for developers and public beta users. But Apple Intelligence will likely not arrive for users until iOS 18.1 or later, as a recent Bloomberg report suggests that some of its AI features will remain in testing until 2025.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, after speaking with sources involved in Apple Intelligence development and based on remarks made by the company during WWDC, has provided a rundown of what he expects to see on the iOS 18 timeline. A big subject on that list is upcoming improvements to Siri, which are not expected to drop until 2025. Some updates will, of course, be delivered throughout the rest of 2024, but Siri will not become “a truly intelligent assistant” until Apple Intelligence fully launches next year.
Gurman also points to comments made by Apple that suggest ChatGPT integration will arrive sometime this year. This seems to be a sort of backup option to provide users with a semi-intelligent assistant to provide general knowledge ahead of its Apple Intelligence release, which will focus predominantly on a user’s personal information for a more streamlined experience.
