How to Create Your Own Custom Emojis with Genmoji

With the new updates iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2, iPhone and iPad users can enjoy a variety of innovative features that utilize Apple's artificial intelligence. One of the standout features is Genmoji, a type of AI-generated emoji that was first introduced at WWDC 2024.

Genmoji are customizable emojis that users can create after installing the update to iOS 18.2 or iPadOS 18.2. These are imaginative emojis that come to life thanks to Apple's intelligence; through a description, such as "a sad cowboy" or "a DJ octopus," Apple's AI attempts to generate the requested representation. Additionally, it is possible to create customized emojis of people you know, as long as you have a photo of them in your library. Once you have created your Genmoji, they will be stored in the keyboard and available for use in Apple applications that support emojis. These can be sent in messages, as standalone stickers, or as Tapback reactions.

To create a Genmoji, you need a device that has the iOS 18.2 or iPadOS 18.2 update and is compatible with Apple Intelligence. This includes all iPhone 16 models, as well as the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, along with iPads with an M1 chip or higher, and the iPad mini (A17 Pro). Currently, the creation of Genmoji is only available on iPhone and iPad, although Apple has announced that the feature will come to Mac in the future.

The process of creating a Genmoji is similar on both iPhone and iPad. First, open a conversation and tap the text field to bring up the keyboard. Then, select the smiley face icon or the globe icon, depending on which you have. This will reveal a multicolored smiley face icon with a plus sign in the top right corner of the keyboard. By clicking on that icon, a text bar will open prompting you to describe the emoji you want to create. Write your description and tap "Done."

If you want to create a Genmoji of a specific person, make sure you have tagged them previously in the Photos app. Then, enter your description and select the “Choose a person” option above the text field. A list of identified people from your photos will appear along with some initial style options. Choose your preferred one, and the Genmoji will be generated using that image.

The results of creating the Genmoji may not be perfect on the first try. If that's the case, adjust your description until you achieve better results. Once you have created your Genmoji, you can find them in the keyboard by swiping right through the emoji options or tapping the sticker icon. You can also add them to Tapback by pressing and holding a message, then clicking on the smiley face icon with the plus sign and searching in the emoji keyboard.

If at any point you decide you no longer want a Genmoji, you can easily delete it. To do this, return to the emoji keyboard and navigate through the pages or simply tap the sticker icon. Find the Genmoji you wish to delete, press and hold, and then select "Delete" when the option appears.