China's Cyberspace Administration has cleared Apple Intelligence for launch in the country, ending a regulatory delay that has kept Apple's generative AI features off Chinese iPhones since their 2024 debut. The rollout will run on Alibaba's Qwen model, integrated across iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS to handle text and image generation and understanding without users switching apps. Baidu confirmed it is also partnering with Apple on localized Apple Intelligence features for Chinese users.
Apple had reportedly explored deals with Baidu, DeepSeek and ByteDance before settling on Alibaba, whose shares jumped more than 6% on the news. The approval lands as Apple's Greater China sales hit $20.5 billion in the second quarter, up 28% year-over-year, and as the company reclaimed the No. 2 spot in China's smartphone market.
No specific launch date was given, but the regulatory green light removes the last major obstacle to bringing Apple's AI suite to one of its largest markets, while cementing Qwen's role as the default AI layer across Apple devices sold in China.