CUPERTINO: Apple on Monday unveiled its artificial intelligence-boosted iPhone 16, showing off the long-awaited phone.

"The next generation of iPhone has been designed for Apple Intelligence from the ground up. It marks the beginning of an exciting new era," Chief Executive Tim Cook said at a product launch.

Apple and technology companies around the world are racing to add AI to products, and phones are expected to be one of the most important battlegrounds. The Cupertino, California-based company also is betting the AI feature will drive consumers to upgrade amid a slowdown in iPhone sales.

Apple Intelligence, the company's AI software, will be used to improve its personal assistant as well as enhancing features such as understanding and identifying objects captured by the phone camera.

"Apple Intelligence marks the start of a new era for Siri and makes it more natural, more contextually relevant and more personal to you," said Apple's software engineering chief, Craig Federighi.

A test version of Apple Intelligence will be available in English as spoken in the US next month. It will be available for other localised versions of English in December, with versions in languages including Chinese, French, Japanese and Spanish next year.

The iPhone 16 will use the new A18 chip and have an aluminum back, as well as a new customisable button that can be used for camera controls. The iPhone 16 will start at $799 and the iPhone 16 Plus will start at $899.

Apple also unveiled iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max, titanium models with a faster chip, the A18 Pro, and more AI capability, such as offering suggestions on how to set up a photo shoot more effectively. The iPhone 16 Pro will start at $999 and the 16 Pro Max starts at $1,199.