iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia will all have built-in "Apple Intelligence," and one of the new AI features includes an Image Playground. With Image Playground, you can generate an image from a prompt, similar to what you can do with OpenAI's ChatGPT. While you can come up with anything, Apple will provide a selection of suggested concepts in categories like themes, costumes, and places.
Apple Intelligence isn't out yet, but iOS 18 does provide some insight into the concepts that Apple will suggest to users, as MacRumors contributor Steve Moser discovered. Apple's suggestions will be personalized, so if you're chatting with friends about going on a hike, you might see it pop up options like mountains and hiker. Note that this list is not exhaustive because it is missing some examples that are in Apple's marketing materials, but these are the options in the beta right now. Apple will also likely add new suggestions on an ongoing basis.
Nature and Environments
- Mountains
- Desert
- Forest
- Garden
- Prairie
- Rainforest
- Waterfall
- Volcano
- Space
- Starry Night
Seasons
- Autumn
- Spring
- Summer
- Winter
Costumes and Characters
- Alien
- Artist
- Astronaut
- Chef
- Farmer
- Hiker
- Healthcare Worker
- Mechanic
- Pilot
- Rancher
- Racecar Driver
- Robot
- Royalty
- Scientist
- Superhero
- Vampire
Themes
- Adventure
- Birthday
- Graduation
- Halloween
- Masquerade
- Party
- Disco
- Fantasy
- Fireworks
- Love
Places
- Art Studio
- City
- Couch
- Library
- Lighthouse
- Museum
- Stadium
- Stage
Items and Accessories
- Baseball Cap
- Beanie
- Beret
- Bike Helmet
- Book
- Bowtie
- Crown
- Flower Crown
- Guitar
- Hard Hat
- Magic Wand
- Microphone
- Party Hat
- Rubber duck
- Scarf
- Sunglasses
- Surfboard
- Sweatband
- Top Hat
Beverages and Foods
- Champagne Glass
- Coffee
- Tea
Image Playground is available as a standalone app, but it's also baked into apps like Notes and Messages. Images that are generated can include your contacts, and many of Apple's suggestions are tailored to that idea. Your iPhone can take a photo of a contact that's on your device and use it to generate a fun cartoon-like image that you can share with them.
Apple adds a style to each image, and there's no option to generate something that looks real. There are three styles to choose from, including Animation, Illustration, and Sketch. Image generation is done on-device, so there's no limit on experimentation.
In the Notes app, Image Playground has a neat added feature that allows it to take a quick sketch you've made and turn it in to something more detailed, plus it can add images based on the context provided in your notes.
Image Playground and other Apple Intelligence features require an iPhone 15 Pro with A17 Pro chip, or an iPad or Mac with an M1 or better chip. Apple plans to start testing Artificial Intelligence in the iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia betas this summer.
