Visual search is coming to iPhone, powered by Apple Intelligence, Apple's suite of AI features, the corporate announced at Apple Event 2024 on Monday.
The camera control, the brand new button on the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, can launch what Apple calls “visual intelligence” – mainly a reverse image search combined with some text recognition.
For example, should you seek for a restaurant using visual intelligence, you'll see hours of operation and reviews, in addition to the choice to view the menu or make a reservation, Apple says. Or should you come across a flyer for an event, you'll use visual intelligence to quickly add the title, time, date and site to your calendar.
The company says the feature respects your privacy and that Apple services won’t ever store your images.
Through Apple's partnership with OpenAI, you may as well use the brand new camera control button on iPhone 16 models to send the query to ChatGPT as an alternative. Apple suggests the feature might be used, for instance, whenever you're stuck on a homework task.
Visual Intelligence, together with other Apple Intelligence features, will roll out in beta to US English-speaking users in October. Users in other countries can expect it in December and early 2025.
