China

Reuters reports that Apple has trained its own large language model for the China market, rather than relying on a third-party model to power its Apple Intelligence features in the country. The LLM has been developed with the help of Alibaba, according to the report's sources. The development marks a break from Apple's previous strategy of relying on domestic models to bring generative AI to ...

Apple briefly published a support guide in China explaining how Mac users can connect Alibaba's Qwen AI to Siri and Writing Tools, before pulling it entirely less than a day later. Reuters first spotted the Chinese-language guide on Apple's support site on August 8, which explained how eligible Mac users in mainland China could connect Qwen, Alibaba's family of generative AI models, to ‌Siri‌...

Apple has been testing memory chips from China's ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) across product lines including iPhones and MacBooks, according to a report today from The Wall Street Journal ($). Laptop makers HP and Acer have already started using memory chips from CXMT in devices sold outside the U.S. Meanwhile, Apple has held early talks with CXMT about supplying components for...

Apple's attempt to use Chinese memory maker CXMT as leverage against Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix has backfired, with the two Korean chipmakers ending up with more pricing power rather than less, ml">DigiTimes reports, citing South Korean and Chinese trade press. This year, Apple has explored CXMT and fellow Chinese chipmaker YMTC as potential DRAM suppliers, and had progressed to testing...

U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer has teamed up with several of his Senate colleagues to demand Apple commit to not purchasing chips from Chinese companies ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) or Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC). [PDF] With memory shortages causing Apple to raise the prices of Macs and iPads, the company has been talking with CXMT and YMTC about a chip deal. The two companies...

Apple Intelligence has been approved by Chinese regulators, opening the door for the AI system to reach iPhones in the country for the first time. Reuters reports that China's Cyberspace Administration registered Apple's on-device generative AI service this week, putting it on a list of newly cleared providers that also includes homegrown systems from Chinese phone makers. An unnamed...

Apple grew iPhone shipments in China by 24.4 percent year over year in the second quarter of 2026, making it the fastest-growing smartphone brand in a market that shrank overall, according to preliminary figures released today by research firm IDC. Total shipments in China fell 4.3 percent to roughly 66 million units, amounting to a fifth consecutive quarter of decline. Apple and Huawei were ...

Apple is testing DRAM memory chips from China's state-backed ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), according to a new report from the Financial Times. Last week, it emerged that Apple was in discussions with CXMT and fellow Chinese chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) about sourcing memory, with no deal finalized. The new details suggest Apple has since progressed to qualifying CXMT's ...

Apple is in talks to buy memory from Chinese semiconductor companies ChangXin Memory Technologies Co. (CXMT) and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC), reports Bloomberg, citing sources with knowledge of the talks. Discussions between Apple and the chipmakers are ongoing, and no deal has been finalized yet. Financial Times previously reported Apple was looking into working with CXMT and...

A group of 48 China-based iOS developers have filed an antitrust complaint against Apple with the country's market regulator over the App Store's commission rates, the South China Morning Post reports. The developers sent an open letter to China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), alleging that Apple failed to deliver on a promise to offer the lowest commission rate to the...

The new enhanced Siri AI features that Apple announced today at WWDC 2026 will not be available in the European Union or in China when they are released in beta later this year. Apple said that while Siri AI will be available for free with the new upcoming OS releases, it will not be available in the EU on iOS and iPadOS until it can find a path forward for regulatory approval. Apple said ...

Apple has slashed prices on the iPhone 17 Pro series in China by 1,000 yuan (around $138) in anticipation of the annual 618 shopping festival, one of the country's largest mid-year online retail events. The cuts went live on Friday on JD.com and Tmall, with Apple's official store on the latter platform applying a direct 1,000-yuan discount on the iPhone 17 Pro series. On JD.com, taking into ...

The Trump administration plans to invite Apple CEO Tim Cook and CEOs from other companies like Nvidia, Qualcomm, Exxon, and Boeing on a trip to China next week, reports Semafor. Trump will apparently focus on building his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the May 14 and May 15 meetings. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer,...

Apple's first foldable iPhone will be eSIM only and feature a Camera Control despite its ultra-thin design, according to a known leaker. In a series of new posts, the leaker known as "Instant Digital" said that Apple has made deliberate engineering compromises to ensure that the first foldable iPhone features a Camera Control button, despite it being at least 1.1mm thinner than the iPhone Air...

China's smartphone shipments fell 4% year over year in the first quarter of 2026, according to data from Counterpoint Research, with Apple delivering the strongest growth among the top six brands. Counterpoint's Market Monitor Tracker attributed the decline primarily to a high base effect from last year's government subsidy program and rising component costs. Counterpoint noted that...

Apple accidentally started rolling out Apple Intelligence features in China before receiving regulatory approval, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Some Chinese users began seeing ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features listed as available and active in the Settings app on their iPhones, but Apple made no formal announcement. Gurman says that Apple is not planning to launch the feature imminently, and...

Apple is moving more decisively to reduce its reliance on Chinese manufacturers ahead of the launch of a wave of new products with OLED panels, DigiTimes reports. Apple has apparently accelerated efforts to diversify its ‌OLED‌ sourcing away from Chinese suppliers such as BOE, which have historically played an important role in the company's display supply chain. The impact on BOE has...

Apple saw a 23% year-over-year increase in iPhone sales in China during the first nine weeks of 2026, significantly outperforming a broader market decline driven by weak demand and rising component costs, according to Counterpoint Research. China smartphone sales apparently fell by 4% year-over-year in the first nine weeks of 2026. Within this environment, Apple emerged as the...

Apple CEO Tim Cook is in China, where he attended one of the company's 50th anniversary events outside of its Taikoo Li retail store in Chengdu today. The event revolved around a performance by Chinese singer Li Yuchun, and it comes after Apple hosted a surprise Alicia Keys concert at its Grand Central store in New York last week. According to the China Daily, Cook is scheduled to attend the ...

Apple today launched its atrial fibrillation history feature for Apple Watch in mainland China. Since 2022, Apple Watch in the U.S. has supported AFib History, which allows users diagnosed with atrial fibrillation to view an estimate of how frequently their heart is in this type of irregular rhythm. The feature analyzes pulse rate data collected by a photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor to...