Apple is in discussions with Tencent and TikTok’s owner, ByteDance, regarding the integration of their AI models into iPhones for the Chinese market. This was reported by Reuters, citing sources.
In October, the American corporation introduced iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1, featuring AI capabilities for a broad audience. In December, the Cupertino-based company released an update adding ChatGPT support to the Siri voice assistant and several other solutions.
Apple Intelligence remains unavailable in China. The country’s legislation requires government approval for the launch of AI-based solutions, compelling the company to seek local partners for functionality implementation.
Negotiations with Tencent and ByteDance regarding the use of their artificial intelligence are at an early stage, Reuters notes. The absence of AI features in iPhones sold in China has become a problem for Apple, leading to a loss of market share, the agency writes.
In November, Huawei re-entered the high-end smartphone sector with a Chinese-manufactured chip, adding AI capabilities based on its own large language model to the Mate 70 series.
Back in June, Apple announced the integration of ChatGPT into Siri, iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, and the launch of the extensive Apple Intelligence initiative.