iOS 18 for App Marketers: Privacy, Inclusivity, and AI Redefined

It’s that time of year again – months after their WWDC unveiling, Apple has unveiled their latest and greatest update to their ecosystem – iOS 18.

With iOS 18, Apple is once again redefining how users interact with apps, pushing the boundaries of user experience and functionality.

From giving users more control over their data to introducing powerful AI features that make apps smarter and more responsive, iOS 18 marks the future of apps.

Developers and marketers alike are now positioned to take full advantage of these updates, ensuring their apps can thrive in this evolving landscape.

This blog will take a deep dive into three key areas of Apple’s latest release: accessibility improvements, its enhanced privacy controls and the integration of Apple Intelligence.

Designing for everyone: Apple’s inclusive accessibility features in iOS 18

From the onset, iOS 18’s features appear to have been designed with strong consideration for Apple’s diverse user base.

First, considering developers, Apple’s updates to its SwiftUI Xcode means that the app development process will see smoother previews, improved integration between SwiftUI and older frameworks (UIKit, AppKit), and greater customisation options.

This means iOS 18 will allow developers to create more responsive, visually engaging, and accessible apps more efficiently than ever before.

iOS 18’s focus on app performance and stability will position apps as faster, more responsive, and technologically advanced.

Now, where Apple’s users are concerned, iOS 18 will deliver a range of new accessibility features. These include:

• Eye Tracking: A built-in option for navigating iPhone with just eyes
• Music Haptics: A new way for users who are deaf or hard of hearing to experience music using the Haptic Engine on iPhone
• Vocal Shortcuts: These enable users to perform tasks by making a custom sound
• Vehicle Motion Cues: This helps reduce motion sickness for passengers using an iPhone in a moving vehicle.

This new set of features mean that iOS 18 not only broadens the scope of accessibility but also elevates the overall user experience for individuals with specific needs.

This attention to inclusivity allows a more diverse audience to engage with apps and services, presenting app marketers with the opportunity to highlight these innovations in their messaging.

How does this affect app marketers?

With iOS 18, app marketers will need to adjust their App Store Optimization (ASO) strategies to highlight the technical and accessibility improvements in their apps.

App marketers who have taken advantage of these features will be able to position their apps as inclusive, socially responsible, and user-focused, which resonates with users prioritising accessibility.

Enhanced accessibility is one of Apple’s core company values. If your app is leveraging new iOS 18 features and accessibility is at the heart of any new product updates, let Apple know, as this could offer up feature opportunities across the App Store. 

The image above displays examples of new In-App Events (IAE’s) created for the Timo app since the launch of iOS 18. These IAE’s directly highlight some of iOS 18’s new accessibility features, targeting some of the diverse users of Apple products.

If you’re interested in getting your app featured, our team of experts at Yodel Mobile knows how to craft the best possible story about your app to get you noticed by the Apple editorial team. You can also read our top tips on this process here.

Leveraging customisation on iOS 18 for stronger ASO results

Continuing to create towards enhancing the user experience, iOS 18 now gives users more ways to personalise their phones. In addition to the ability to customise the layout and controls on their home and lock screens, users can now fine-tune app icon designs, by choosing between different colours and styles, creating a more cohesive and personal user experience.

For app marketers and developers, the increased customisation options in iOS 18 present both opportunities and challenges. There may be challenges around maintaining brand consistency and recognisability. Leveraging the tint effect means that apps could lose immediate brand recognition on the home screen as this will override your icon’s brand colours. However, customisation could create deeper engagement with apps overall.

The image above displays an example of new app icon customisation options that come with iOS 18.

How personalised app icons can shape app marketing and retention with iOS 18

Developers can leverage this by creating apps that align with users’ desire for personalisation, offering custom widgets or interactive features that fit seamlessly into their preferred layouts. Highlighting these customisation features in App Store marketing materials can also attract users who prioritise personalisation, making apps more appealing to a broader audience.

From a development perspective, iOS 18 demands that apps be adaptable and flexible, ensuring they integrate smoothly with the various customisation capabilities users now have.

Developers must consider how their apps will look and function across different custom layouts and make sure that app widgets and interfaces remain user-friendly regardless of the chosen configurations.

Apple have updated their developer documentation; you can read more about the new practices for creating app icons here.

Now that developers will have to factor in app icon customisation, a range of creative possibilities are opened up. This also requires additional attention to detail during the design and testing phases.

Ensuring that apps respond well to the user’s customisation choices can enhance retention and satisfaction, driving better app performance over time.

iOS 18’s privacy revolution: Putting users in control

Building on its legacy of security-first innovation (made especially apparent through iOS17) and continuing to prioritise the user experience, Apple has enhanced its user privacy systems for iOS 18.

Apple’s new privacy features gives users even more control over their data. Users have more control over app permissions and the specific types of data an app can use (e.g., location, contacts, or camera access).

For example, a messaging app that offers friend matching may require access to your phone contacts. Some of your contacts may contain sensitive information, including birthdays or addresses. Until now, once given permission, these apps have had access to the full extent of your phone contacts.

The image above shows the new prompts users are given when sharing contact details.

Now, with iOS 18, you are given more transparency about the data that you will be sharing with apps and more control by providing the option to select the contacts that are shared.

You can find out more about exactly how that’s done, here.

This heightened level of transparency fosters greater trust between users and their apps, as they’ll now be more aware of how their data is handled.

It is clear that with iOS 18, there is a lot of emphasis on being more transparent with users and also offering them more control over the data that they share.

To make this possible, iOS 18 comes with a new set of privacy features. These include:

Data sharing transparency

Through new transparency features, users can view detailed reports on how apps are using their data, including which data is collected and with who its being shared with.

This allows them to revoke permissions or uninstall apps that don’t align with their privacy preferences.

On-Device processing

A feature of Apple Intelligence, (which we expand on further down), on-device processing means that privacy-sensitive tasks, such as processing personal health data or voice commands, are now handled directly on the user’s device.

This means users can rest assured that their sensitive data stays private without being uploaded to the cloud.

App-specific data permissions

iOS 18 allows users to control app access to personal data on a much more detailed level. Take the example of phone contact sharing above as reference.

Updated AdAttributionKit

AdAttributionKit for iOS 18 has undergone significant enhancements, particularly in its ability to track re-engagement and measure attribution across different app stores.

This provides advertisers with more granular insights into how users interact with their ads and subsequent actions within the app, enabling more targeted and effective campaign optimisation.

Additionally, AdAttributionKit for iOS 18 offers enhanced developer mode testing capabilities for easier integration and testing.

Additionally, its creative differentiation reporting provides valuable insights into how different creative elements impact ad performance. Notably, these advancements are achieved without compromising user privacy. You can read more about the specifics of this in one of our guides.

User-Centric privacy and its impact on app marketing

The new privacy features in iOS 18 significantly impact app marketers in several ways:

Data sharing transparency

With users able to see how their data is used, marketers must prioritise clear and transparent data practices.

This transparency may lead to greater trust but also means that users may be more likely to revoke permissions or uninstall apps if they feel their data is not being used appropriately.

This means marketers should communicate the benefits of data collection clearly and align their messaging with users’ privacy expectations. Building trust through transparency will be crucial.

On-Device processing

As more processing occurs on-device, marketers may face limitations on data availability, especially for analytics that rely on cloud processing. This can affect targeted advertising and personalisation efforts.

Marketers should adapt by focusing on first-party data and utilising on-device capabilities to create personalised experiences without compromising user privacy.

App-specific data permissions

Users have more control over their data access, which means that app marketers must ensure their apps provide clear value in exchange for permissions.

A more granular approach to permissions may lead to fewer granted permissions overall.

Marketers should design onboarding processes that educate users about the necessity of specific permissions, emphasising how these enhance the user experience.

Updated AdAttributionKit

The updates to AdAttributionKit in iOS 18 offer significant benefits for app marketers. Marketers can now track user interactions more effectively, measure attribution across different app stores, test campaigns more efficiently, and analyse the impact of creative elements on ad performance.

These updates allow marketers to make data-driven decisions, improve campaign effectiveness, and build stronger relationships with their users in a privacy-conscious manner.

This shift in data tracking and privacy protocol emphasises building trust through transparent data practices, making iOS 18 a pivotal release for developers and marketers.

The future of AI in apps: Apple Intelligence in iOS 18

Finally, we’ve reached the topic of Apple Intelligence. Arguably the headline feature of iOS 18.

Apple Intelligence is Apple’s take on AI. It is a new set of tools designed to bring advanced machine learning and AI-driven capabilities to apps, enhancing their overall functionality and user experience.

At WWDC, Apple revealed that the full extent of Apple Intelligence features will initially be available for specific types of apps, including Books, Browsers, Cameras, Document readers, File management, Journals, Mail, Photos, Presentations, Spreadsheets, Whiteboards, and Word processors.

Apple Intelligence’s features will primarily be available to Apple’s core apps.

This means that while third-party apps can benefit from Apple’s AI frameworks like Core ML, Vision, and Natural Language, they don’t have direct access to the same level of Apple Intelligence that is integrated into Apple’s own apps.

Apple’s core apps leverage a deeper integration with the system and have access to more data and resources, allowing them to provide more sophisticated AI-powered features.

Third-party apps can still create impressive AI-driven experiences by using Apple’s frameworks and tools effectively.

App Intents and personalised experiences with Apple Intelligence

The range of AI-driven experiences we will see with iOS 18 will be driven in part by App Intents.

App Intents are a feature that allows users to interact with apps using voice commands or Siri Shortcuts. They enable users to perform actions within apps without having to open the app itself and act as the connection between apps and Apple Intelligence.

This means users can do more with their voice or Shortcuts without needing to open the app. This is because with iOS 18, Siri is now more sentient, making interactions more natural and intuitive.

The core functionality of App Intents is the result of App Intent Domains. These are collections of App Intents based API’s. 12 original domains have been made for iOS 18, with Mail and Photos being the first to launch. See the image below for all 12.

For an idea of the way these work in action, think of a photo-editing app like Darkroom. This app could leverage the Set Filter Intent,(photos.SetFilter), to edit your photos. Users could simply say “Apply a cinematic present to the photo I took of Mick yesterday” to have the app take action. It’s that simple now.

With these features integrated into iOS 18, developers have a unique opportunity to build more intelligent and personalised experiences across these key app categories.

How Apple Writing Tools enhance content creation

The Apple Intelligence Writing Tools in iOS 18, use AI to enhance writing experiences on your phone. These tools integrate with system-wide features to assist users in generating and improving content.

For instance, you can use them to compose text with suggestions for tone, style, and clarity, much like a sophisticated version of autocomplete. Additionally, the tools leverage GPT-4 to enhance creativity, helping with everything from drafting emails to generating supporting images within documents.

This AI-powered functionality operates seamlessly across Apple’s ecosystem, offering real-time writing assistance tailored to user preferences.

These tools aim to streamline content creation and boost productivity, making them valuable for users who need help generating written content or visual complements quickly and efficiently​.

The image above displays Apple’s Writing Tools Features at work.

Using the Apple Image Playground API for engaging user experiences

Apple Intelligence also comes with the Image Playground API.

Image Playground offers a simple and engaging way to create fun, interactive images within messaging, productivity apps and more. You’ll be able to use this function in apps like Messages, Notes, Keynote and Pages.

Since all images will be created entirely on-device, there’s no need for you to build or maintain separate models, making it seamless for users to enjoy image creation within your app.

Pictures created by Image Playground will take the style of cartoons and illustrations rather than photos. This is a protective measure Apple has put in place to avoid images being misused.

At the Annual The Talk Show Live Interview, Apple’s VP of software engineering Craig Federighi briefly mentioned that iOS will “mark up the metadata” for generated images, so that anyone knows when an image is created by Apple Intelligence and not by someone else.

These efforts demonstrate Apple’s commitment to user safety and privacy.

The image above displays an example of an AI-generated image being put together, courtesy of the Image Playground API.

Apple Intelligence’s commitment to privacy

Leveraging Apple Intelligence’s functionality ensures that users benefit from powerful AI features while maintaining privacy as a core focus.

Apple employs advanced techniques, like on-device processing (mentioned above) and federated learning, to ensure personal data remains secure.

This means that tasks such as text generation, image creation, or productivity suggestions can be performed without sending sensitive information to external servers.

Additionally, Apple’s Foundation Models have been developed with privacy protections embedded in the design to prevent unintended data sharing or harm.

By focusing on privacy, Apple allows users to enjoy the intelligence and convenience of AI without compromising personal information​

What these changes mean for app marketers

Apple Intelligence brings significant opportunities for app marketers by introducing advanced AI capabilities like on-device data processing, privacy-focused functionality, and user-friendly APIs.

App marketers will need to adjust their strategies to capitalise on Apple’s new AI-driven features and ensure their apps meet Apple’s evolving guidelines.

For example app marketers could highlight how AI improves user experience while safeguarding privacy through on-device data processing. Really consider the new features of iOS 18 and which ones to feature in your app’s metadata.

Ensuring that an app is AI-enhanced yet privacy-conscious could be a strong selling point in marketing materials and ASO strategies.

Properly highlighting these capabilities in app store listings can set your app apart in competitive categories like productivity or content creation.

App marketers and developers should stay up to date with this innovation to guarantee app store success in this new era of technological advancement with iOS 18.

Embracing iOS 18: How app marketers can thrive

As iOS 18 ushers in a new era of app performance and user experience, app marketers must be proactive in embracing its innovations to stay ahead.

By capitalising on its accessibility improvements, Apple Intelligence and its enhanced privacy features, marketers can craft app strategies that resonate more deeply with their audiences.

Highlighting these technical upgrades in marketing campaigns not only sets an app apart but also aligns with user priorities like privacy and inclusivity.

iOS 18 offers app marketers the opportunity to refine their messaging and positioning, ensuring their apps thrive in a highly competitive space.

We will continue to follow this story and many others. Read our app marketing blog to stay in the loop.