iOS 18's New 'Genmoji' Feature Lets You Create Your Own Emoji

One of the new Apple Intelligence features coming to the iPhone with iOS 18 is Genmoji, which allows you to instantly create your own custom emoji.

Genmoji iOS 18
AI-generated emoji can be created with text prompts like "smiley relaxing wearing cucumbers" or "t-rex wearing a tutu on a surfboard."

Just like emoji, Apple says Genmoji can be added to messages, shared as a sticker, or used as a Tapback reaction in the Messages app.

iOS 18 Genmoji
Apple Intelligence features are not included in the first beta of iOS 18, and instead will become available for testing over the U.S. summer.

iOS 18 should be publicly released in September.

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
iphone 17 pro dark blue 1

iPhone 18 Pro Max Rumored to Deliver Next-Level Battery Life

Friday February 6, 2026 5:14 am PST by
The iPhone 18 Pro Max will feature a bigger battery for continued best-in-class battery life, according to a known Weibo leaker. Citing supply chain information, the Weibo user known as "Digital Chat Station" said that the iPhone 18 Pro Max will have a battery capacity of 5,100 to 5,200 mAh. Combined with the efficiency improvements of the A20 Pro chip, made with TSMC's 2nm process, the...

Top Rated Comments

enjoi52 Avatar
22 months ago
Mark my words, Genmoji may be one of the most impactful features to in terms of getting consumers comfortable with AI.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
garotemonkey Avatar
22 months ago
I believe the Braindead Monkeys put it best about a year and a half ago, in "You're Not Helping ('http://bdmonkeys.net/alac/BDM-Meta_Meat-17-Youre_Not_Helping.m4a')".
"Do you really NEED a smiley face eating a pickle while wearing a sombrero?"
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
22 months ago
One of the new Apple Intelligence features coming to the iPhone with iOS 18 is Genmoji, which allows you to instantly create your own custom emoji.

The emoji can be created with text prompts like "t-rex wearing a tutu on a surfboard."
That's the power of Apple Intelligence.

Will this put Apple's emoji creators out of a job?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Supercyborgninja Avatar
22 months ago
Tbh the Image Playground & this seem really Un-Applelike.

But more than anything, the lack of demo hearing Siri is worrying to me.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dulcimer Avatar
22 months ago
Genuinely impressed by this. The fact that they can be sent inline with message makes adding new Unicode emoji kinda useless haha.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ghost31 Avatar
22 months ago
People take things too seriously. This looks fun as hell to play with and i know me and my wife are gonna enjoy playing with it
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)