Apple Intelligence gets China approval, with a beta due later this month
Apple Intelligence and Alibaba's Qwen language models have received regulatory approval in China, and a beta version should arrive later in October, Apple executive chairman Tim Cook said during a visit to Shanghai.
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Apple Intelligence and Alibaba's Qwen language models have received regulatory approval in China, and a beta version should arrive later in October, Apple executive chairman Tim Cook said during a visit to Shanghai. Global Times reported the news on October 15, 2026, citing the STAR Market Daily.
The first features to roll out will be live translation, writing tools and photo cleanup. The redesigned, AI-powered Siri is not part of this first batch. Cook said Apple was very pleased that the first core features could now be released step by step. Bloomberg had earlier reported a wider public rollout in December.
The approval follows a series of filings. Records from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology show that the network access permit for Apple's foldable iPhone Duo was updated on September 29 to include registration numbers for Apple Intelligence and for Alibaba's Tongyi Wanxiang and Qwen models. In July, Apple Intelligence was listed among seven on-device generative AI services that had completed China's filing process. Working with Chinese partners such as Alibaba gives Apple a route to offer localised AI models to iPhone users in China.
Why it matters
China is a major iPhone market where Apple's AI features have not been available until now, so the beta closes a long-standing gap.
Source: Global Times