How to use Apple's Genmoji to create new types of emoji

For decades, emoji selection has depended on what's available on your smartphone's keyboard. Every year brings a new emoji—I like it.face with bags under eyes,'' although he is still running. But sometimes the pre-installed options are not specific enough. Thankfully, Apple has a solution, and it's called Genmoji.

with the help of apple intelligenceYou can generate custom emoji directly from your keyboard using a text prompt or even a picture of a person from your photo library. Below, I'll walk you through all the steps to create your own Genmoji.

check us out ios 18 roundup For a complete list of all the top features of Apple's latest operating system. Be sure to also check out our other Apple guides, including best iPhone, Best iPhone 16 AccessoriesAnd best ipad,

Enable Apple Intelligence

Before we start, you'll want to check if you have access to Apple Intelligence. It launched with iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1, but Genmoji launched exclusively in iOS 18.2. To check your software version, go to Settings > General > AboutIf it says iOS 18.2 or newer then you're good to go. If you need to update, Backup your device first,

If you still don't have access to Genmoji, make sure Apple Intelligence is enabled (it should be on by default). Go Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri and toggle on apple intelligenceThe thing to note is that Apple Intelligence itself Available on select iPhones-This iPhone 16 range, iPhone 15 ProAnd iPhone 15 Pro Max,

Screenshot courtesy of Brenda Stolier via Apple Intelligence

Enter your signal

1. When you have the Messages window open, tap the emoji icon (smiley face) or the keyboard icon (globe) to access the Emoji keyboard.
2. In the upper right corner of the keyboard, tap genmoji icon (Pink and blue smiley face with a plus sign).
3. Type a few words or a phrase in the textbox that describes what you're looking for and tap Done,
4. Swipe and tap through populated Genmojis Add on which you want to use. It will then appear in your emojis drawer stickers,
5. You can also create Genmoji based on images of people in your Photos app. Start by typing a prompt like “Julian is celebrating his birthday”, tap “Pick a person” From the list of contacts that appears, select the specific person. From there, you'll see different Genmojis populate depending on the prompt. Tap Add When you find the one you want to use.

Fine-tune your Zenmoji

You can also make changes to your original gesture to create new versions of your original Genmoji.

1. Tap the text box in the Zenmoji window.
2. Type a refined version of your prompt or a completely new version. For example, instead of “dog in birthday hat,” you could change it to “dog with birthday cake.” It will then automatically repopulate with the new versions.