Disabled Apple Intelligence is turned back on by bug in recent iOS release
Yes, it's true. For many iPhone users with a compatible model, Apple Intelligence is underwhelming when compared to the AI offerings from Samsung and Google. That's not to say that AI won't get better for iPhone users over time, but at this stage anyway, Samsung and Google seem to have a better grasp over how AI can improve their users' lives. Still, Apple decided to have Apple Intelligence turned on by default for compatible devices with the recently released iOS 18.3 update.
So let's say you have an iPhone 15 Pro, an iPhone 15 Pro Max, or any of the new phones in the iPhone 16 series and you decided to disable Apple Intelligence. We can imagine how surprised you were after installing iOS 18.3.1, released just yesterday, and discovered that Apple Intelligence has been enabled again after you disabled it. That's right, some sort of bug in the incremental iOS 18.3.1 update will turn Apple's AI features back on after you've taken the time to disable them. This also seems to be a problem for those who installed macOS 15.3.1.
Fixing this is very simple. If you disabled Apple Intelligence on your iPhone after installing iOS 18.3 and the feature was enabled again after installing iOS 18.3.1, all you need to do is manually toggle it off again. Go to Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri and toggle off the Apple Intelligence button which is the first one you'll see in the menu. If you change your mind, you can always return to the same page and toggle Apple Intelligence back on.
iOS 18.3.1 bug turns on Apple Intelligence even if you've previously disabled it. | Image credit-PhoneArena
Before you disable Apple Intelligence, you might want to wait to see how much AI improves Siri in iOS 18.4. With the latter update, Siri will have some new tricks up her sleeve such as the ability to recognize what is on your display. The update will also allow Siri to use your calendar, email, and messages to help answer questions such as, "What time is my lunch with Mom next week? Where are we meeting? The update will also give Siri more control over individual apps, and engage in conversations with you that are more natural.
The iOS 18.4 beta should be arriving soon. If you don't mind installing an unstable beta (possibly reducing your battery life and temporarily losing features you might use every day), you can get an early look at the improvements to Siri. Make sure that your model supports Apple Intelligence (to repeat, those models are the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and any of the phones in the iPhone 16 series), back up your phone, and install iOS 18.4 beta 1 when it is available.
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