Apple Intelligence approved for launch in China
What's the story
Apple's generative artificial intelligence (AI) service, Apple Intelligence, has been approved for launch in China. The approval was granted by the Cyberspace Administration of China and comes after a deal to integrate Alibaba's Qwen AI model into Apple's operating systems. These include iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS. A Baidu spokesperson also confirmed their collaboration with Apple on developing features specifically for Chinese users.
Market impact
Apple recently reclaimed its No. 2 position in China
The deal with Alibaba is a major milestone for Apple's AI ambitions in China, a key market where it generated $20.5 billion in sales last quarter in Greater China.
That's a 28% increase from the previous year.
The company also recently reclaimed its No. 2 position in China's smartphone market after discounts on the iPhone lineup during a recent shopping festival.
Regulatory hurdles
ByteDance, DeepSeek integrations being explored
Apple Intelligence features have been delayed in the Chinese market due to lack of approval from local regulators.
The company is also said to be exploring integrations with other major AI players including DeepSeek and ByteDance.
Earlier this year, Apple accidentally turned on these features in China for hours without approval.
Tech integration
Chinese version modified to include Alibaba technology
The Chinese version of Apple Intelligence has been modified to include Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. technology as a filter of sorts. This works with the Chinese government to approve ongoing large language model (LLM) updates.
The US version, on the other hand, uses services from Alphabet Inc.'s Google and OpenAI for search while Baidu Inc. powers its Chinese counterpart.
System upgrade
What's new in Apple Intelligence?
Since its initial rollout, Apple Intelligence has been overhauled for iOS 27, which will be widely released this fall.
The upgrade includes a new version of Apple Foundation Models built on Google's Gemini AI and a revamped assistant called Siri AI.
However, Apple has said it needs to work with Chinese regulators on rolling out the latter.