Apple's (AAPL) Apple Intelligence AI feature, originally announced at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), will be rolled out in September in tandem with iOS 18, but the latest reports suggest that Apple Intelligence will be delayed until October, not to coincide with the iPhone 16 and the iPhone and iPad's September iOS 18 software update.

Even if Apple Intelligence rolls out with iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1, some of the features that provide answers based on on-screen content will still be delayed, the report said. Apple plans to gradually roll out the full functionality of Apple Intelligence through multiple iOS 18 updates in late 2024 and the first half of 2025.

That said, Apple plans to make a beta version of Apple Intelligence available to software developers for the first time, and could open early testing to developers as early as this week through beta versions of iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1. Additionally, Apple has released the fourth beta of iOS 18.0 to developers last week, with the goal of completing development by the end of July.

As the iPhone 16 series is virtually unchanged in terms of design, its software and chip breakthroughs will play a decisive role in its sales performance.