Apple Intelligence Sees Strong Early Adoption, Says Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook shared a rare adoption update about Apple Intelligence during the company’s fiscal Q1 2026 earnings call, saying that most users with supported iPhones are already engaging with the new AI features.

As usual, Cook opened the call with a broad performance snapshot across Apple’s major product categories, including iPhone, iPad, Mac, wearables, retail, and services. Apple Intelligence featured in that overview, though concrete numbers remained scarce.

According to Cook:

The majority of users on enabled iPhones are actively leveraging the power of Apple Intelligence.
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Adoption Numbers Remain Unclear

While the statement sounds encouraging, Apple did not disclose how many iPhones currently support Apple Intelligence, making it difficult to quantify real-world usage. Cook mentioned the company’s 2.5 billion active devices milestone shortly after, but that figure includes all Apple hardware and does not reflect AI usage specifically.

Apple also avoided explaining what qualifies as “active leveraging.” Cook briefly mentioned tools like Writing Tools and Clean Up, but did not detail how Apple measures engagement with these features.

However, he did call out Visual Intelligence as one of the most widely used Apple Intelligence capabilities. The feature lets users interact with on-screen content to search faster, take actions, and get answers across apps.

Live Translation Also Gets a Mention

Cook also highlighted Live Translat i on, noting that Apple has received strong feedback from users who rely on it to communicate across languages.

Despite the lack of concrete metrics, Cook’s comments suggest Apple Intelligence is seeing early traction on compatible devices

iGeeksBlog Take

While Cook’s comments on Apple Intelligence adoption sound promising, the lack of concrete numbers makes it hard to gauge real-world traction.

Calling out Visual Intelligence and Live Translation shows Apple is prioritizing practical, everyday AI features. Still, clearer metrics would help paint a fuller picture of how widely Apple Intelligence is being used.

Are you already using Apple Intelligence on your iPhone? Share your experience in the comments.