On July 15, 2026, Alibaba's US-listed shares jumped more than 6% after the company confirmed that its Qwen artificial intelligence model will power Apple Intelligence features for iPhone users in China. The announcement marks a critical step in Apple's long-delayed AI expansion in the country, following months of regulatory negotiations. Apple's own stock rose about 1.8%, while Baidu's US-listed shares climbed roughly 2.8% after the company separately affirmed its collaboration with Apple on AI capabilities for Chinese users.
The launch became possible after China's cyberspace regulator approved Apple Intelligence for use on iPhones, clearing a major hurdle that had stalled the platform since its initial unveiling in 2024. China requires all large language models and generative AI services to obtain official approval before public release. Alongside Apple Intelligence, Samsung's Galaxy AI also received approval, while domestic manufacturers Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi, and ZTE gained clearance, with ByteDance serving as ZTE's AI partner.
An Alibaba spokesperson told CNBC that Qwen will be integrated into Apple Intelligence across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS in China, enabling text generation, image generation, and image understanding without switching apps. This dual-partner strategy—working with both Alibaba and Baidu—underscores Apple's effort to comply with China's regulatory framework while expanding its AI footprint outside Western markets.
The development occurs amid rising US-China AI rivalry. Alibaba recently barred employees from using Anthropic's models, and US lawmakers have explored restricting Chinese AI adoption. Reports also indicated that Meta abandoned its planned $2 billion acquisition of Chinese startup Manus after Beijing's intervention. Separately, Apple is in talks with startup PrismML to run compressed AI models on iPhones, further highlighting the intense push toward on-device AI capabilities.
