I ignored the Shortcuts app on my iPhone for years, despite the fact that my friends swear by it. I know I should've used it, but creating shortcuts called for understanding logic and actions, which seemed like a steep learning curve that I was not ready to climb. However, this is about to change with iOS 27's new 'Describe a shortcut' feature, which lets me create automations using only plain English. I tried it for myself, and I don't believe any iPhone users will create shortcuts the old way.
What Is Describe a Shortcut in iOS 27?
Apple unveiled a lot of new Apple Intelligence features during its WWDC 2026 keynote, from the standalone Siri app to improvements in Image Playgrounds, better child safety features and more. But the one thing that had me giddy with excitement was the ability to create shortcuts in natural language.
As Apple explains, "Automate daily tasks with a simple description. Just describe what you need, and Shortcuts connects actions across multiple apps to get it done". This means no more manually connecting different components when creating a shortcut, as the AI will understand what action you want to perform and build the shortcut in minutes.
Type It, Don't Build It and AI Handles the Rest
As soon as I saw the announcement, I picked up my iPhone Air and installed iOS 27 developer beta to try it out for myself. Surely, it can't be that easy to create shortcuts, or else Apple would have done it years ago, I thought to myself. Plus, Apple has had a history of fumbling Apple Intelligence. So, I held my expectations tight as my iPhone booted with iOS 27.
My first impression was positive. To give you an idea of how it works, I started with a simple prompt: "Turn on Focus Mode when I reach the office". I did not specify the time on purpose, and I got a shortcut on my screen that did exactly what I asked for. No digging through actions. No dragging blocks around.
I moved on with an involved prompt, "Launch Apple Music and play my 90s Nostalgia playlist when I put the phone on charge". In seconds, I had a fully built, working Shortcut. I plugged my iPhone in to check, and it worked. I stepped things up by further adding more automations to my existing shortcuts, like "turn on Do Not Disturb and enable Dark Mode too when plugged in", and it's done.
This would have taken a significant amount of time for me to build it manually, if I bothered at all. That said, I only spent a brief period with it, and my testing has been limited to relatively straightforward prompts. I expect more complex automations might need some manual tweaking on top of what the AI generates. But as a first impression, this is one of the best iOS 27 features.
A New Beginning for the Shortcut App for Many
A big reason I never invested any time in Shortcuts before was exactly that: the investment. Learning automations, understanding each block and its conditions. Prior to this update, it felt like it needed more effort than what the payoff was worth. I will turn on dark mode or restart my iPhone on my own instead of all this mental gymnastics. Surely there are plenty of people who felt the same way, and this is a sigh of relief for us.
So Apple's approach looks practical. Rather than introducing AI for the sake of it, this is Apple using its own tools to fix one of its own longstanding usability problems. The Shortcuts app has always been capable. It just was not approachable. And that is, I am sure many people like me will be rediscovering the Shortcuts app on their iOS 27-eligible devices and making the most out of it, which they never did before.
-1120w630h.webp "Why Does Every App Look Better on iPhone? The Ugly Truth About Android Design thumbnail")
