Apple integrates Alibaba’s Qwen AI in China — Korea Herald
Apple has entered into a partnership with Alibaba to integrate the Qwen artificial intelligence model into the Apple Intelligence service in China. Samsung Electronics, for its part, continues to work with Baidu to localize Galaxy AI for the Chinese market, Korea Herald reports.
Qwen for Apple Intelligence
On October 31, Alibaba announced its agreement with Apple. Developer testing has already begun, while a public launch is scheduled for December alongside iOS 27.3. The Qwen model is expected to support Siri, Writing Tools text-processing tools, and the Visual Intelligence feature, including for generating texts and answering questions about photographs and documents.
Apple’s own models will continue to power features such as real-time translation and photo editing. The next generation of Siri with artificial intelligence will not be included in the first launch phase.
Samsung’s cooperation with Baidu
Samsung has been working with Baidu since January 2024. While the Circle to Search feature on global versions of the Galaxy S24 uses Google technologies, in the Chinese version it runs on the Ernie model and Baidu’s search capabilities. Chinese media reported in July that the cooperation had been extended to the Galaxy S26 series.
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According to Baidu, the companies also worked on Chinese-language text input, document summarization, Bixby, and a call assistant that, depending on user settings, can handle calls from courier services and food delivery services.
Regulatory requirements and competition
China requires public generative AI services to comply with content and security standards and undergo regulatory registration. In July, China’s cyberspace regulator included Apple Intelligence and Galaxy AI among seven registered AI services for smartphones.
The partnerships may also provide access to local digital ecosystems: Alibaba operates Taobao and Alipay, while Baidu has strong positions in search and mapping services. At the same time, experts interviewed by the publication point to the risks of foreign manufacturers becoming dependent on Chinese AI providers, including the possible weakening of control over technologies and data.
According to Counterpoint Research, smartphone shipments in China fell by 10% year-on-year in the third quarter. Huawei held 21.3% of the market, Apple 19.5%, while Samsung did not rank among the top six manufacturers.
