Apple announced at WWDC 2026 that its Shortcuts app will let users create automations by describing what they want in plain language. The update uses Apple Intelligence to turn written prompts into shortcut steps, reducing the need to manually choose app actions, system actions, and variables.
The feature will roll out with iOS 27 later this fall. Apple describes the update on its Apple Intelligence page, where it says users can create useful shortcuts with more ease.
Shortcuts Moves Beyond Power Users
Shortcuts has long been built for users who want to automate repeated tasks, create workflows, or connect actions across multiple apps. The process can be useful, but it often requires users to understand how actions, conditions, and variables work together.
“While super powerful, the process of creating these shortcuts can feel, well, complicated,” Cecilia Dantas, Apple’s senior manager of Home Software Product Marketing, said during the WWDC keynote, according to TechCrunch.
With the new AI feature, users can type a request instead. Apple Intelligence will interpret the description and build the required shortcut steps.
Apple Shows A Commuting Example
Apple showed how a user could create a shortcut that alerts their partner when they leave work and shares an estimated time of arrival. Instead of building the automation manually, the user could describe the request in Shortcuts.
The app would then create an automation that runs when the user leaves work, uses a stored address, calculates the ETA through Apple Maps, and sends the message through Messages. Apple’s iOS 27 page also highlights new Apple Intelligence features across iPhone apps.
Users can later edit a shortcut by describing the change they want. In Apple’s example, the user could ask the shortcut to start playing a favorite podcast after the work-leaving automation begins.
AI Makes Automations More Approachable
The update is designed to make Shortcuts easier for people who do not want to build workflows manually. It also expands what non-technical users can create without searching for the right app actions.
Apple’s WWDC 2026 developer page lists the event as the company’s main software conference for developers. The updated Shortcuts app is expected to arrive with iOS 27 later this fall.
Featured image credits: Pickpik
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