Apple Introduces AI-Generated App Review Summaries in iOS 18.4

With the iOS 18.4 update, currently in public beta, Apple is adding AI-powered summaries of App Store reviews. This feature uses Apple Intelligence, the company’s built-in AI, to generate an overview based on user reviews.

According to Apple’s website, these summaries rely on large language models (LLMs) to condense key details into a short paragraph. They will be updated weekly for apps and games that receive enough reviews, though Apple has not specified the exact threshold required.

App Store users can report issues with the feature by tapping and holding on a review, while developers can notify Apple of problems through App Store Connect.

Gradual Expansion to More Markets and Languages

Initially launching in the U.S. in English, AI-generated summaries will expand to more markets and languages throughout the year for apps with enough reviews. The feature will also be available in iPadOS 18.4.

First discovered by Macworld in the recent beta release, the feature could incentivize dishonest developers to manipulate their ratings by flooding review sections with fake, bot-generated, or paid positive reviews to influence the AI-generated summaries.

While fake reviews are already a widespread issue on platforms that host user-generated feedback, AI summaries could exacerbate the problem by making users overly reliant on the condensed review rather than reading a broader range of opinions.

The feature also puts Apple’s AI to the test, requiring it to accurately identify and surface negative feedback within App Store reviews rather than overly favoring positive remarks.

AI Review Summaries

Apple isn’t the only major tech company using AI to analyze reviews. Amazon introduced AI-generated product review summaries in 2023, while Google’s Gemini AI can also summarize product reviews, as outlined in a developer tutorial. Additionally, Google integrated AI-powered review summaries into Google Maps last year.

Currently available to beta testers running iOS 18.4 beta 2 and iPadOS 18.4 beta 2, Apple’s AI review summaries will be widely released in April when the software update rolls out to all users.

Other expected features in the update include expanded language support for Apple Intelligence, availability of Apple Intelligence in the EU, Visual Intelligence for iPhone 15 Pro users, new Siri options in Control Center, the ability to pause app downloads, and an AI-powered system to prioritize important notifications.

Read the original article on: TechCrunch

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