Apple recently posted and removed details explaining how Mac users in China could set up their computers to work with Alibaba\u2019s Qwen AI. Now,\u00a0Reuters has confirmed long-held speculation that Apple has revisited its Google Gemini AI playbook and built its own proprietary AI model for China with support from Alibaba.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Apple worked with a Chinese partner because US models such as ChatGPT or Claude are not being made available there, though Chinese AI development doesn\u2019t seem to be held back by that lack. Apple and Alibaba have not commented on the claims, the report said.<\/p>\n
The approach echoes Apple\u2019s work with Google to build more advanced large language models (LLMs) for use with Apple Intelligence, and the news will likely be seen as broadly positive by Chinese iPhone users. They can now look forward to working with Apple Intelligence on their devices. The proximity of the reporting suggests they may be able to access Apple\u2019s AI quite soon, once new Apple operating systems ship next month.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also smart, as it means Apple has identified a way to introduce AI features in nations that are becoming protective of their tech stack.And while Apple\u2019s work with Google on Apple Intelligence was widely regarded as signifying how far behind the company had grown on AI, the work it is now doing with Alibaba shows how the partnership approach has become a strategic tool. Basically, Apple found a way to use such development partnerships to navigate protectionism and political rivalry for the benefit of its customers.<\/p>\n
The approach means Apple has the distinction of becoming the first foreign company approved to offer a proprietary AI model in China.<\/p>\n
The work seems to have begun in February 2025, when Apple and Alibaba\u00a0submitted co-developed AI features\u00a0for approval to China\u2019s Internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration of China. Apple last month crossed a milestone in this work when the regulator finally registered Apple\u2019s service. Apple will work with both Alibaba\u2019s Qwen and tech from Baidu, previous reporting has claimed. It is not yet clear how the work with Baidu will be deployed.<\/p>\n
Delivering AI to Chinese customers is strategically vital to Apple. Its products are hugely popular among Chinese consumers and can arguably be seen as an expression of US soft power there. Any erosion of its position also erodes the US reputation in the economically vibrant market.\u00a0<\/p>\n
AI, or the lack of it, has become a fulcrum for change. Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring explained this last year, when he said: \u201cOur survey work shows that Chinese iPhone users are not only more interested in access to genAI technology than US or European iPhone owners, but over 50% of Chinese iPhone owners cited the staggered rollout of Apple Intelligence as having a moderate to significant impact on their decision not to upgrade to a new iPhone this cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Apple is already struggling with these new competitive pressures. It has been encountering\u00a0stiff competition from Huawei\u2019s already AI-capable devices in China, with Huawei now the biggest-selling smartphone vendor there.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Apple is also experiencing a\u00a0seasonal slowdown\u00a0in sales as shoppers wait on the introduction of the new iPhone Pro range. They expect powerful AI to be baked into the devices they select. \u201cIncreasing investment in agentic AI is becoming a competitive necessity rather than a differentiator,\u201d\u00a0Counterpoint warns.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also an impact on US employment. While Apple often faces criticism for having some of its assembly done in Asia, rather than the more expensive and inadequately resourced US, outgoing CEO Tim Cook recently explained that the company accounts for more than 400,000 jobs in the US. Many of those jobs are generated by the manufacturing of high-tech parts such as the protective glass used on iPhones.<\/p>\n
While the significance may be easy to miss, this also means that any slowdown in device sales in the world\u2019s second-largest economy \u2014 China \u2014 will also have a negative impact on US employment. Apple, meanwhile, continues to invest in improving US manufacturing skills and infrastructure. The company\u00a0recently opened its Advanced Manufacturing Center in Houston\u00a0in the presence of US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this Advanced Manufacturing Center, Apple\u00a0will equip American workers with the skills they need to lead the next generation of technology,\u201d Lutnick said.<\/p>\n
Apple, meanwhile, is apparently planning toward introducing its much-anticipated folding iPhone Ultra device initially in America first.<\/p>\n