Are all those smiley-face emoji just not creative enough for you? On Monday at its WWDC conference, Apple announced a new twist, called Genmoji. When this update arrives in the fall for iPhone Messages in iOS 18, users will be able to use generative AI to create innovative -- and perhaps bizarre -- emoji, and then use them in messages.
One example Apple showed was a smiley-face emoji with cucumber slices over its eyes, as if it were spa day in The Emoji Movie. Another showed a tutu-wearing T. rex on a surfboard, while yet another showed a squirrel DJ. Apple suggested you use that last one to complain about noisy squirrels outside your window.
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You can also use AI to choose a photo of the friend you're texting and turn it into an emoji. You can then share that as a sticker or a tapback response to a text message, or drop it inline in your message thread.
Image Playground expands on AI images
And in case Genmojis don't offer enough creative imagery, Apple also announced a new feature called Image Playground. It'll let folks use generative AI to create images for use in Messages; in Apple's Freeform and Pages apps; and in a new Image Playground dedicated app.
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The images shown are obviously cartoon-inspired, which seems intentional on Apple's part, since there's been much controversy about AI-manufactured images that are realistic enough to fool people into thinking they're actual photos.