Many Mac, iPhone, and iPad users are discovering that installing the latest available system software updates of MacOS Sequoia 15.3.1, iOS 18.3.1, and iPadOS 18.3.1 will automatically enable Apple Intelligence, even if the feature has been disabled before.
While this doesn’t happen to everyone, some Mac, iPhone, and iPad users are seeing an Apple Intelligence welcome / setup assistant screen display on their device after they install the latest system software updates, which then enables the AI feature.
Prominent Mac software developer Jeff Johnson of LapCatSoftware experienced the issue, noting that other users also experienced Apple Intelligence enabling itself after the software updates, and assumes it is a bug.
If you do not want to have Apple Intelligence enabled on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, and you found that it has enabled itself again, or you installed the latest system updates and you’re not sure, you can disable the Apple Intelligence feature at any time by doing the following:
- Mac: Go to Apple menu > System Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri > toggling Apple Intelligence OFF
- iPhone & iPad: Go to Settings app > Apple Intelligence & Siri > toggling Apple Intelligence to OFF
Apple Intelligence has a lot of helpful uses and can help you do anything from write emails for you to create a business plan, but not everyone has an interest in using the AI features.
Note that your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, must have Apple Intelligence compatibility, in order for this feature to exist on your device, let alone enable itself automatically after a system software update. If your device is an older or unsupported model, you will not have to worry about this obviously.
Did you discover that Apple Intelligence enabled itself automatically on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, after installing the latest available system software updates onto your device? Did you toggle the feature off, or are you using it? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments.