Apple has temporarily paused its AI-generated notification summaries for news and entertainment apps after receiving criticism for generating inaccurate alerts.
The decision follows an incident where a BBC article was misrepresented, falsely claiming that a murder suspect had shot himself. This error prompted Apple to review its notification processes and implement immediate changes.
With the latest developer previews for iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, and macOS Sequoia 15.3, Apple has disabled notification summaries for news apps, promising to reintroduce the feature after improvements.
The company also plans to add greater transparency by displaying all notification summaries in italics, helping users distinguish them from regular alerts. Additionally, users will soon be able to disable notification summaries for specific apps directly from their Lock Screen for more control.
Apple is introducing further adjustments to ensure clarity around this feature. When users enable notification summaries, they will now receive a warning in the Settings app, explaining that the feature is in beta and may generate occasional inaccuracies.
This acknowledgment aims to set clearer expectations about the AI’s reliability during its refinement phase.
Last week, Apple announced its intent to clarify that text in notification summaries is generated by Apple Intelligence. While some expected this clarification to come through a new label or badge, the company has opted for changes like italics and user options instead.
Public beta testing for these updates is set to begin next week, but the exact release date for iOS 18.3 remains uncertain. Apple’s decision to pause the feature reflects its commitment to improving accuracy and user trust while refining its AI tools.
For now, users can expect additional safeguards and transparency measures to accompany future releases, ensuring better experiences with Apple’s notification systems.
