Auto Creating Reminders from Email Messages

In my constant state of trying to make things a bit more efficient for myself. (I'm a big believer in automation, ask anyone that has ever worked with me.) We have computers! Make the computers do work instead of us manually doing things on the computer.  

I wanted to find a way to auto-create a reminder from an email. I assume you can figure out how to create a rule to match an email in Mail.app, but one of the actions you can take on a mail rule is "Run AppleScript".

This AppleScript, given the email match, will create a reminder that links back to the email for you:

using terms from application "Mail"

    on perform mail action with messages selectedMessages

        try

            log "Starting script execution"

            tell application "Reminders"

                repeat with theMessage in selectedMessages

                    try

                        tell application "Mail"

                            -- Fetch subject and message ID

                            set emailSubject to subject of theMessage

                            set messageID to message id of theMessage

                            

                            -- Mark email as read

                            set read status of theMessage to true

                            

                            -- Change email color to blue

                            set background color of theMessage to blue

                        end tell

                        

                        -- Log values for debugging

                        log "Email Subject: " & emailSubject

                        log "Message ID: " & messageID

                        

                        -- Construct reminder properties

                        set reminderText to emailSubject

                        set emailLink to "message://%3C" & messageID & "%3E"

                        set reminderNotes to "Link to the email: " & emailLink

                        

                        -- Create reminder in default list

                        tell list "Reminders" -- Change "Reminders" to your desired list name

                            make new reminder with properties {name:reminderText, body:reminderNotes}

                        end tell

                        

                    on error errMsg

                        log "Error processing message: " & errMsg

                    end try

                end repeat

            end tell

        on error errMsg

            log "Script execution error: " & errMsg

        end try

        log "Script finished execution"

    end perform mail action with messages

end using terms from

You need to change the "list" (see "tell list") you want the reminder to go into.

This will take an email, mark it as read, change the background color of the email to blue, create the reminder, and then exit.

You can't put the "message://" link in the URL field directly with AppleScript, as there is no method within the AppleScript reminders dictionary to access "URL". Shortcuts.app can, but AppleScript can't. (I know, right?)

But I have a Shortcut that I execute from the end of this AppleScript that moves it for me. You can execute the shortcut from the AppleScript by putting this after the last "end tell”.

            do shell script "shortcuts run \"URL Mover for Reminders message\""

            log "Shortcut executed successfully"

There's the shortcut. It'll handle both "message://" and "<message:" links (the latter created by OmniFocus if you moved from OmniFocus to Reminders).

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Apple's AI Challenges in the EU: A Casual Take

So, Apple has stated that it is uncertain if it is bringing some of its AI features to the EU -- there’s a lot to unpack here. They say they're unsure if their AI can meet the EU's strict regulations. Considering how tightly Apple's ecosystem is knit together, it's a valid concern.

Apple has had to make some significant changes to comply with EU rules—allowing other browsers, mail clients, and even alternative app stores on their devices. But it's interesting that the EU hasn't touched Apple's Weather app or other basic utilities. This shows the focus is more on certain competition and user choice where other companies have complained (Spotify, Epic Games)​. (Engadget)​​ (MacRumors)​.

During WWDC, Apple said they want to let other AI and machine learning models onto their devices. There are several presentations about this subject that happened during WWDC, and you can watch the videos on line.  They even rolled out a dev kit for it. This means not just Apple's AI but also others can run on iPhones and iPads. Still, whether this will satisfy EU regulations is a big question mark. The EU's rules are pretty strict, especially regarding privacy and security, and Apple's AI is deeply woven into their hardware and cloud services​ (Engadget)​.

Some EU regulators have accused Apple of "malicious compliance," suggesting they're not allowing AI in the EU to dodge competition rules. I think the real issue is that Apple’s AI is so intertwined with their hardware that meeting the EU's requirements is a tough nut to crack​ (MacRumors)​.

Apple's ongoing struggle with EU regulations highlights the tension between their integrated tech approach and the need for more openness and competition in the market. The future of AI on Apple devices in the EU is still up in the air​ (Gadgets 360)​.

Bottom line -- I don't think Apple is saying "we may not roll out AI in the EU" to be mean, I think they are saying it from a legitimate point of view.  Apple doesn't know if they are going to be allowed to.

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