Google, Facebook, and Apple are threatening European customers with their artificial intelligence technology, so the iPhone franchise will look very different in 2018.
According to Apple, all four iPhone 16 handsets – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – will be able to run Apple’s AI, called Apple Intelligence. Instead of four handsets, Apple will release eight very different models, all with different hardware, software, and features.
The EU will only be able to get that one, so sorry US iPhone owners!
Apple confirmed that iOS 18 will enable European Union (EU) iPhone and iPad users to customize their iOS software unlike ever before.
iPhone 16 series EU version features:
Apple’s iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max users in the EU will have way more control over Apple’s system or default apps than users in the US.
No App Store on iPhone 16? The walled iOS garden can be replaced by one of the third-party application stores that emerged after Europe enforced its antitrust laws against Apple.
There will be a Default Apps Section on iPhones in Europe that will enable users to replace stock browsers, mail, applications store, and payment apps with third-party alternatives. Further, Apple promises that future software updates will include new default settings for dialling numbers, sending messages, translating text, navigation, managing passwords, keyboards, and spam filters, but the navigation swap, which will replace Apple with Google Maps, will not arrive until next year.
As a result, an iPhone 16 with Chrome in place of Safari, AltStore instead of App Store, Google Wallet for contactless payments, and an alternative dialer and messaging app will be a completely different device than one bought in the US on September 20.
No Apple Intelligence features for EU:
An even more formidable legislation for personal privacy, security, and consumer choice has been developed by the European Commission this year. Apple, for instance, is forced to allow alternative browsers to Safari under the Digital Markets Act, which deals with antitrust legislation. Additionally, there is the Digital Services Act, which demands that communication platforms like X, Facebook, or Telegram remove illegal or misleading content.
In addition to the three pillars of European tech regulations, there is the AI Act, which requires utmost transparency and restricts AI models that target general-use scenarios, such as OpenAI, Google Gemini, and yes, Apple’s nascent AI platform.
As a result, Silicon Valley giants were not very happy about the extra effort required to comply. Several AI-powered services are being withheld from European users by Meta, Apple, Google, and OpenAI. At WWDC in June, Apple Intelligence was announced, but the iPhone maker said it would not roll it out in Europe due to “security compromises.”
On September 20, iPhone 16 series purchased in the US will support Siri’s typing support, smart messaging replies, mail summaries, Clean Up photo editing, and a similar tool to Google’s Magic Eraser.
Apple Intelligence won’t be present on an iPhone 16 bought in Europe, but all major stock apps can be stripped away and replaced with a user’s preferred alternative, such as Chrome instead of Safari.
On the surface, the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max look the same everywhere. A European iPhone 16 and an American iPhone 16 will have different features, look, and feel once picked up.
