A China-specific model trained with Alibaba
Apple has trained a large language model specifically for the China market with the support of Alibaba Group, according to three people familiar with the matter, a departure from the iPhone maker's strategy of relying on third-party models to power AI features in the country. The model was developed in partnership with Alibaba, and its training with the Chinese tech giant's assistance has not been reported previously. Apple and Alibaba declined to comment on the development.
Shift from third-party models and what it means for Apple Intelligence
The China-tailored model would give Apple greater control over the AI experience in its most competitive overseas market, where it has lost ground to local rivals including Huawei that have raced ahead with AI-equipped handsets. In the United States, Apple pairs its own technology with models from Anthropic and OpenAI, services that are not available in China. Apple Intelligence, the company's suite of AI tools, is expected to launch in China in the coming months after an update to its iOS operating system.
Regulatory clearance and a dual-track rollout
The training move follows a lengthy regulatory process that ended last month, when the Cyberspace Administration of China registered Apple's generative AI service, clearing the way for Apple Intelligence to reach Chinese iPhones for the first time. Under that earlier arrangement, Alibaba's Qwen model is set to be incorporated into the version of Apple Intelligence shipped with compatible iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro models in China, with the service also set to incorporate technology from Baidu, Reuters reported in July. Apple's planned rollout represents a dual-track strategy on AI deployment for a foreign firm in China, allowing it to navigate regulatory hurdles that have limited access for other U.S. technology firms, and would make Apple the first foreign company approved by Beijing to offer a proprietary AI model in the country.
Apple looks to AI for a China boost
Apple's partnership with Alibaba was first confirmed in February 2025, when Alibaba chairman Joe Tsai, speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, said Apple would use the Chinese company's AI to power its phones in China. Last week, Apple published a Chinese-language guide explaining how eligible Mac users in mainland China could connect Qwen to its Siri digital assistant and Writing Tools feature, a Mac-specific arrangement that could help it compete in China's AI PC market, before subsequently deleting the guide without providing an explanation. Alibaba's U.S.-listed shares climbed about 4% in premarket trading on news of the July registration, underscoring investor expectations that the tie-up could reshape China's AI ecosystem.
Other developments
Separately, South Korea's LG Innotek, a key Apple supplier, is believed to have recorded a record-high share of revenue from Apple in the first half of 2026, according to Yonhap News Agency, a development that is consistent with Apple's broader hardware push but is not directly linked to its China AI strategy.
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