After months of beta testing and tons of advertising, Apple Intelligence is officially here. If you have a compatible iPhone, iPad, or Mac, you can install Apple’s latest update and try out the first wave of new generative AI features on your device. First of all, all you have to do is wait in line.
As it happens, you can’t just turn on a compatible Apple device and expect Apple Intelligence to be up and running. Once you’ve installed iOS 18.1 on an iPhone 15 Pro or later, iPadOS 18.1 on an A17 Pro or M Series iPad, or macOS 15.1 on an M Series Mac, you’ll need to join the Apple Intelligence waitlist if you actually want to participate. You have the opportunity to test these new AI features today.
We’ve covered how to actually enable (or disable) Apple Intelligence on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, so check out our guide if you’re interested. But maybe you just arrived from After signing up for Apple’s waitlist, you’ve probably read that guide and wondered, “Wow, how long is this going to take?”
Expect to wait up to several hours (I had to wait 90 minutes)
What’s the answer? it depends. Apple officially states that Apple Intelligence is “typically activable.” Within hours of joining the waitlistThe company doesn’t want all eligible users to sign up for Apple Intelligence at once, so they’re trying to spread out activation by introducing a delay to this waitlist.
That being said, wait times definitely vary. I remember when we first started rolling out the beta, users were reporting that it took anywhere from 30 minutes to several seconds to get waitlist approval. At the moment, it looks like more users are jumping on board, which is why the wait times are getting longer. Personally, it took about an hour and a half for my own access to be approved.
Once approved, iOS, iPadOS, or macOS will send you an alert via a notification from the Settings app that says “Apple Intelligence is ready: It’s time to experience your new personal intelligence system.”
