Apple has confirmed that Apple Intelligence is finally coming to China: testing starts November 4 and the public release arrives in December with iOS 27.3, with Alibaba’s Qwen built into Siri. Why it matters: it ends a delay of more than two years in the world’s largest smartphone market — but the newest Siri AI is not part of the deal.
October 31, 2026
What happened
In a press release on its China Newsroom site, Apple said the first wave of Apple Intelligence features opens for testing with the latest iOS developer beta on November 4 and launches publicly in December with iOS 27.3, though it gave no specific December date. Apple Intelligence first shipped outside China in late 2024; Chinese iPhone buyers have waited since then while regulators reviewed the service. Reuters reported in mid-July that Apple had cleared a major regulatory hurdle, and Apple has now confirmed the launch window itself.
What Chinese users get — and what they don’t
The first wave is the original 2024 feature set: Writing Tools, Genmoji, Clean Up in Photos, Visual Intelligence, Live Translation, notification summaries, priority notifications, natural-language photo search, Smart Reply and Type to Siri. Apple is clear about the limits: no Siri AI and none of the other next-generation features announced at WWDC 2026, and Image Playground is unavailable too. The rollout is iPhone-only for now — Mac, iPad and other devices follow only after further approvals. Supported devices are the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 16 and later, iPhone Air and iPhone Duo, with Siri and the device language set to English or Simplified Chinese.
Alibaba’s Qwen is built in
Apple has partnered with Alibaba so users can reach its Qwen assistant inside Siri, Writing Tools and Visual Intelligence for certain requests — asking questions about photos and documents, including PDFs and presentations, and generating original content — signing in with a Qwen account or Sign in with Apple. The system features themselves run on Apple’s own models; Qwen is a partner integration for specific experiences.
Why it matters
This is a practical lesson in how AI actually ships worldwide: the model is only half the product — the other half is regulatory approval, and in China that means a domestic partner and a trimmed feature list. Apple gets its AI story back in a market where Huawei, Xiaomi and Honor have shipped assistants for two years, but without the flagship Siri AI it sells elsewhere. Expect the same pattern — local partners, staggered features, approval-first rollouts — wherever AI crosses borders.
Frequently asked questions
When does Apple Intelligence launch in China?
Testing begins November 4 in the developer beta; Apple says the public release comes in December with iOS 27.3, with no specific date given.
Is Siri AI included in China?
No. Apple says Siri AI and the other WWDC 2026 features are not part of the China launch, and Image Playground is also unavailable.
Which iPhones are supported?
iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 16 and later, iPhone Air and iPhone Duo, with Siri and the device language set to English or Simplified Chinese.
Sources: Apple Newsroom (China), MacRumors, 9to5Mac