WWDC 2024 hype season is upon us! We’re a little over a week away from Apple’s annual developer conference, where the company is expected to announce new versions of all of its platforms, including iOS 18.
All rumors point to iOS 18 being the biggest update to the iPhone software in years, with generative AI as the headlining act. We’ve already heard of some obvious AI updates, like smart summaries, photo retouching, and automatic replies. However, a new report from AppleInsider suggests there’s even more AI in store. The Apple-focused publication says iOS 18 will get a “Catch Up” feature where Siri can provide an overview of recent notifications, cross-device media controls where you can activate Siri on one device to control another, and even the ability to create and edit images within iMessage using generative AI.
With all these leaked AI features, it might be easy to overlook perhaps the most underrated one: AI that can automatically solve math problems.
No Need to Open Up the Calculator App
According to AppleInsider, a new feature called “Keyboard Math Predictions” will detect and automatically solve math equations that are entered as text. Think of this like your iPhone’s predictive text that finishes your sentences for you, but for math problems. On top of that, the Notes app will get a crash course in math, with the ability to recognize math equations and offer solutions with help from the Calculator app’s integration. Apple is also reportedly working on a way to generate graphs within the Notes app.
Apple’s AI isn’t the only one that can handle some math thrown its way. OpenAI previously announced GPT-4o, and the AI chatbot made easy work of an equation looking to solve for x. GPT-4o can even act as more of a personal tutor for more involved problems.
Big AI Reveal on June 10
Fortunately, we only have to wait until Apple kicks off its WWDC 2024 on June 10 to see what’s in store with iOS 18. The software update won’t officially arrive until the fall, but Apple will share installable developer and public betas shortly after WWDC if you’re willing to deal with bugs and such throughout the summer.
With Apple hopping on the wave, generative AI chatbots are proving that they can handle math just as well as they can understand natural language. You could argue that AI-assisted math could make us all dumber, but that’s also what people said about calculators and computers. Sure, technology has made some people lazier, but it’s also helped save us time and solve even more complex problems. Adding AI that can solve math into the iPhone will only strengthen its purpose as do-it-all device.
