Apple has rolled out the third developer beta of iOS 18.1, introducing more Apple Intelligence features such as “Clean Up” in Photos, which removes background objects, and improved notification summaries. Alongside the iOS 18.1 beta, Apple has also released the iOS 18 public beta 6. The latest public beta is likely the final version before Apple begins rolling out the stable release of its new operating system to users.
The upcoming iPhone 16 series, scheduled for launch on September 9, is expected to come with iOS 18 out of the box. Apple will likely roll out iOS 18 to other eligible iPhone models shortly after.
iOS 18.1 developer beta 3: What’s new
Apple has separated the iOS 18.1 beta cycle from the iOS 18 beta cycle. While the iOS 18 beta versions focus on offering a new user interface, app redesigns, and other changes, the iOS 18.1 beta update introduces new Apple Intelligence features. Here is everything new with iOS 18.1 developer beta 3:
Clean Up option in Photos
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Apple has added a new “Clean Up” image editing tool to the Photos app with iOS 18.1 developer beta 3. This Apple Intelligence-powered tool uses artificial intelligence to automatically detect and remove distracting objects in the background. Users can also select a specific object by tapping or circling it and ask the tool to remove it. Once the object is removed, the feature uses generative artificial intelligence to fill in the blank spaces appropriately.
This feature is similar to Google's Magic Eraser and Oppo's AI Eraser.
Notification summaries for all apps
Apple had already made AI-generated notification summaries available for native apps like Messages and Mail with previous betas of iOS 18.1. However, with the latest update, Apple has extended this feature to include notifications from third-party apps. According to a report by MacRumor, Apple now allows users to opt for notification summaries for third-party apps as well.
Notification summaries use Apple Intelligence to pick up key details from multiple notifications from an app and group them together, offering information at a glance.
iOS 18 public beta 6: What’s new
While Apple continues to introduce significant changes in the iOS 18.1 betas, iOS 18 beta updates bring only minor changes such as improved stability, bug fixes, and better optimisation. According to a report by 9To5Mac, the latest iOS 18 beta version is likely the final update before Apple begins rolling out RC (release candidate) versions of the new operating system for iPhones.