Apple kicked off WWDC 2024 on Monday, introducing several exciting updates. Among the announcements, Apple revealed a new feature for iOS 18: the ability to record and transcribe phone calls. This update will also notify the person on the other end that the call is being recorded. While Android users have had the call recording feature for a while, this is the first time Apple is offering this feature to its users.

“Record and transcribe live calls directly from the Phone app. The Call Recording iOS 18 feature will be available in English in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, and in Spanish in the US, Mexico, and Spain. The feature will also come to France, Germany, Japan, China, and Brazil in their native languages,” Apple said in its blog.

You can now enable recording on your iPhone when you answer or make a call. All participants on the call will be notified that the call is being recorded, so there are no confusions or surprises. Everyone will know about the recording from the very beginning. As the call is being recorded, your iPhone will also provide a written transcript of the conversation.

One of the exciting new features Apple is introducing is the ability to create a summary of the main points discussed during a call. This means you can quickly review important aspects of a conversation without needing to listen to the full recording. This feature is part of Apple’s new Intelligence features, which make it easier to remember and refer to important information from your calls.

The transcription feature will support multiple languages, including English (US, UK, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore), Spanish (US, Mexico, Spain), French (France), German (Germany), Japanese (Japan), Mandarin Chinese (China mainland, Taiwan), Cantonese (China mainland, Hong Kong), and Portuguese (Brazil). This wide range of language support ensures that many users around the world can benefit from this feature.

Apart from call recording and transcription, there are several other updates being made to the Phone app. A new search interface for call history will make it easier to find past calls. The app will also have an autofill feature for phone numbers, so when you start typing the digits, the app will be able to complete the number for you. There will also be an option to easily switch SIM cards during a call, which will be convenient for users who use multiple SIMs.

Apple plans to extend these audio and transcription capabilities to the Notes app as well. This means you can record audio directly in the Notes app from iPhone 12 and later models and get live transcripts. These updates are set to make managing calls and notes more efficient and user-friendly.