Apple gets approval for iPhone AI in China with Alibaba, Baidu

[BEIJING] Apple on Wednesday (Jul 15) received long-awaited government approval to roll out Apple Intelligence in China, potentially giving it a boost in the world’s most competitive smartphone market. 

The Cyberspace Administration of China on Wednesday included Apple’s generative artificial intelligence on a list of newly approved providers, alongside recent offerings from local companies like Huawei Technologies and Xiaomi. 

The iPhone maker introduced its AI features two years ago, adding tools for writing, generating images, summarising notifications and creating custom emojis. The features have been stuck in the Chinese approval process and development required Apple to work with outside partners.

The version of Apple Intelligence for the China market was modified to include Alibaba Group Holding technology as a filter of sorts that works with the Chinese government to approve on-going large language model updates. Apple had completed work on this a year ago.

The US version of the features tap into services from Alphabet’s Google and OpenAI for search, while the Chinese version works with Baidu. Both Alibaba and Baidu confirmed on Wednesday that they are part of the launch for Apple in China. The news sent Alibaba’s American depositary receipts up as much as 7.9 per cent after markets opened in New York. Baidu’s ADRs gained as much as 4 per cent.

While the features have been cleared, Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the timing of the rollout. Earlier this year, Apple accidentally enabled the features in China for hours without approval. 

Since Apple’s initial Apple Intelligence rollout, the system has been overhauled for iOS 27, which will be widely released this fall. That includes the use of a new version of Apple Foundation Models built on top of Google’s Gemini AI. There’s also a revamped assistant called Siri AI, but Apple has said it needs to work with Chinese regulators on rolling that out. 

The announcement comes after Apple’s outgoing chief executive officer Tim Cook joined US President Donald Trump’s business delegation during a visit to Beijing in May. 

Cook, who’s set to hand over the reins to John Ternus in September, continues to strengthen the relationship he’s cultivated with Beijing over the years. That has endured despite elevated tensions between China and the US over everything from tariffs to technology export controls. Cook will stay on at Apple as executive chairman, where he will continue engaging with policymakers around the world.

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Apple Intelligence’s clearance in China allows the company to tap a population keen to experiment with new AI technologies. The rollout is likely to give another boost to Apple’s surprise recovery in China, potentially helping it close the gap with local leader Huawei. 

Still, the company faces stiff competition establishing itself as an AI leader after giving domestic smartphone makers a head start on embedding AI into their devices. BLOOMBERG