IT Home On October 15, Tim Cook, executive chairman of Apple’s board of directors, confirmed in an interview with media outlets such as The Paper and Jiemian News in Shanghai that Apple Intelligence and the related Alibaba Qianwen large model have been approved, and a testing version will be released to Chinese users later in October.
Cook said that the first features include real-time translation, writing tools, photo removal tools, etc., but Siri AI is not included in this release. “We’re happy that some of Apple’s core smart features can be rolled out gradually,” Cook said.
IT Home previously reported that the Alibaba-related models approved this time include Tongyi Qianwen and Tongyi Wanxiang. The former is a large language model, and the latter is an image and video generation tool.
Bloomberg Gurman also reported that Apple plans to officially launch Apple Intelligence for Chinese users with the iOS 27.3 update in December. The first batch of features will be basically the same as those in the version released overseas for the first time in 2024.
On the same day, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao met with Cook. The two sides exchanged views on topics such as China-US economic and trade relations, the development of artificial intelligence, and Apple’s business in China. Wang Wentao said that China advocates for safe and controllable artificial intelligence development, inclusive benefits for all, and cooperative governance. He hopes Apple will play a bridging role in promoting sustainable and stable growth of China-US economic and trade relations. Cook said that Apple is optimistic about the future prospects of China and will further expand its business in China.
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