Apple has trained a custom large language model specifically for the Chinese market, utilizing technical support from Alibaba Group, according to Reuters.
Chinese flags hang from a lamp post in front of an Apple Inc. store in Shanghai. Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis arrangement would make Apple the first foreign company cleared by Beijing to offer a proprietary AI model in China.
The custom model is expected to power portions of Apple Intelligence when the AI suite rolls out to mainland China via an upcoming iOS update.
This marks a strategic shift from Apple's earlier plan to rely solely on third-party Chinese models for its regional generative AI features. According to the report, OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude - which Apple pairs with its own technology in Western markets - are unavailable in China.
In July, China's Cyberspace Administration officially registered Apple's generative AI service, clearing the primary regulatory hurdle that had kept Apple Intelligence off local devices.
Under this approved framework, Alibaba's Qwen model will integrate into Apple Intelligence across compatible iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Vision Pro headsets sold in China, while Baidu's technology will separately support search-related features.
It remains unclear exactly how Apple's proprietary model will divide tasks with Qwen and Baidu, as the technical breakdown between the systems has not yet been disclosed.
China remains one of Apple's most crucial markets. Until n
