Apple Intelligence Not Device Region Locked to US in Latest Betas

Apple in the latest iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1 betas no longer requires users to set their device region to the United States, so now it's just the US English language requirement that remains.

apple intelligence symbol
In previous betas, users not only had to change Siri's language to the US to access Apple Intelligence, but they also had to change both their device region and language to the US as well.

However, as per the latest release notes and spotted by 9to5Mac, the requirement to change device region to US appears to have been dropped, which means things like measurement system, temperature, and calendar formatting can remain unchanged with Apple Intelligence enabled.

In other words, users running the third betas of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1 only have to ensure that English is their preferred language in Settings ➝ General ➝ Language & Region, and that English (United States) is the set Siri language in Settings ➝ Apple Intelligence & Siri.

With those two settings in place, users outside of the US can opt to join the Apple Intelligence waitlist, which in most cases gets accepted in just a few minutes. Note that Apple Intelligence remains unavailable in China, while users in the EU must still have a device signed in with a US App Store ID.

Apple Intelligence encompasses a range of capabilities, including composing text and emails, automating actions across various apps, generating images, summarizing documents and texts, and more.

These features require a lot of on-device computing power, so before you do anything, it's worth checking if your device is compatible. iPhone users need either an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max to run Apple Intelligence, while only iPads and Macs powered by M1 or later Apple silicon processors are compatible.

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Top Rated Comments

pelowj Avatar
8 months ago

At some point Apple might decide to pull out of Europe. Their marketshare there is not that important. Would the EU then fine Apple for leaving. How would that work if you don’t do business in the EU anymore?
Pull out of its second biggest market, full of stable, reliable and wealthy countries? lol. You need to plug yourself back into reality there.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dschulian Avatar
8 months ago
OpenAI can roll out their service world wide without any issues while Apple, the most valuable company in the world has to region lock their „Intelligence“ features.

Embarrassing.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dschulian Avatar
8 months ago

Requiring US English as the primary system language is quite a different thing from a region lock, since I'm using it from Australia...
From the Article

[...] while users in the EU must still have a device signed in with a US App Store ID.
So it is, in fact, region locked.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
krspkbl Avatar
8 months ago
real English when?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wbeasley Avatar
8 months ago
I hope Apple keep geofencing the EU... dont want to risk another fine :)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AndiG Avatar
8 months ago

Tim finally does one right thing.
Realising that Apple is dead without AI?

Primarily, it’s the younger generation, especially those who post a lot, who will drive technology trends. Without strong AI integration, Apple users will fall behind Android/Google users.

I don’t understand where Apple is heading. It needs to change its business model, moving away from the highway robbery in the App Store, but it refuses to do so. Apple also needs to enhance its hardware by adding more RAM and improve its software by integrating more AI features.

The software could use a refresh as well.

All of this is possible, but I doubt that Tim Cook and Phil Schiller are the right people to lead Apple into the future.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)