Apple is planning to bring Apple Intelligence to China with the release of iOS 27.3, reports Bloomberg. The launch, which comes after two years of regulatory delays will include basic Apple Intelligence features for things like photo editing and a limited version text generation tools. However, Siri AI, Image Playground, and the newer version of Genmoji will be missing.
The South China Morning Post today reported that China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently gave Apple network access permits to add Alibaba’s Qwen and Tongyi Wanxiang models to pave the way for an Apple Intelligence debut.
Apple Intelligence features first debuted with the release of iOS 18.1, but they have been missing in action in China since that launch. While Apple received initial clearance to launch Apple Intelligence in China in July, it still needed additional clearance for a consumer launch.
China harshly restricts foreign AI technology, forcing Apple to partner with Alibaba and Baidu in order to launch Apple Intelligence in the country. Apple also has to gain future approval for ongoing updates to the AI models.
iOS 27.3 is expected expected to debut in December.