According to Bloomberg editor Mark Gurman, iOS 18 will be a major update for the iPhone, and Apple is expected to catch up with Google in terms of artificial intelligence (AI) features, so Apple's management describes iOS 18 as an "ambitious" and "innovative" program. Apple's management describes iOS 18 as an "ambitious" and "innovative" program.

Gurman didn't mention specific details about iOS 18 in the article, but because the quality of the initial version of the system failed to live up to expectations, Apple's head of software engineering Craig Federighi reportedly decided to pause the development of new features for iOS 18 for about a week at the end of last month and use that time to fix system bugs. Gurman believes the last time Apple ran into a similar dilemma was in 2019, when it overhauled iOS, leading to a rash of system vulnerabilities and new iPhones that year still failing on launch day. And in 2018, some of the new features of iOS 12 had been delayed until iOS 13 for live installation due to system quality issues.

Additionally the article mentions the iPhone 16, and Gurman reveals that the iPhone 16 lineup won't get much of a hardware upgrade, though the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will at least come with a larger display and a 48-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera. To summarize, Gurman believes that iOS 18 will be especially important for Apple and the iPhone line of phones.

Earlier, Gurman also confirmed rumors about the availability of third-party app markets for Apple phones. Under the EU's Digital Markets Act, iPhone users in Europe will be able to access third-party app stores as early as the first half of 2024. Apple is said to be working on a "strict control program" that would allow the iPhone to install apps from sources other than the App Store under certain conditions, so downloading third-party apps on the iPhone won't be as easy as it is on Android phones.