Alibaba’s willingness to cooperate with Apple in implementing Apple Intelligence support for the Chinese market has already been confirmed by representatives of the Chinese partner, which is not quite typical for Apple’s business ethics. According to unofficial information, the company will introduce a localized version of Apple Intelligence in China in early May this year. Baidu will not remain on the sidelines either.
Image Source: Apple
As Bloomberg reminds us, Baidu is the default search service for Chinese Apple device owners. Baidu will also have a role to play in implementing Apple Intelligence support in China, as the work of this complex of artificial intelligence technologies is organized on several levels at once.
For example, some of the information processing takes place directly on Apple devices, and in this area, the company in China will rely on Alibaba’s “software layer” to filter information that Chinese users find undesirable for consumption from the point of view of the PRC authorities. If some filters on a particular user’s device do not have time to update at the time of the information request, access to AI functions will simply be blocked until the filters are updated automatically.
The second layer of Apple’s work with data in its own AI ecosystem involves processing information in server infrastructure. For this, the company will also need a partner in China. Most likely, this will be GCBD, which already manages iCloud infrastructure in the region.
Finally, the third level involves interaction with search engines and chatbots, and in this case, Apple’s Chinese partner will be Baidu. The latter will be tasked with working with AI functions in the field of images, which are part of the Visual Intelligence subcategory. In the US, these functions work with the help of Google and OpenAI’s technological capabilities. The Siri voice interface redirects US users’ requests that require AI to the OpenAI infrastructure.
As Bloomberg explains, in China, Apple will use its own local AI models at the device level, while Alibaba’s solutions will serve the purpose of content moderation. Compared to other regions where Apple Intelligence operates, such work will be carried out on a more regular basis in China.
These principles will only apply to Apple devices that were originally sold on the Chinese market and were intended for it. If a user imports an Apple device intended for use in another region into China, these restrictions will not apply to it. Accordingly, solutions from Apple’s Chinese partners will not work on “foreign” devices in this case.
The timing of Apple Intelligence’s rollout in China will not be affected by the release of iOS 18.4, which is scheduled for April this year. This update should bring Chinese language support, but this will be relevant for Chinese speakers living outside of China who use their native language to access foreign versions of Apple Intelligence.