Shares of Chinese technology giants Alibaba and Baidu surged on Thursday after the companies confirmed partnerships with Apple to deploy their artificial intelligence models for Apple Intelligence services in China.
Hong Kong-listed shares of Alibaba rose about 5% after the company confirmed that its Qwen AI model would be integrated into Apple’s services for users in China. The gains followed comments from an Alibaba spokesperson, who told CNBC that, “Qwen will be integrated into Apple Intelligence experiences within iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS for users in China.”
The spokesperson added that the partnership would enable users to access Qwen’s capabilities, “like text and image understanding and generation, without needing to jump between tools.”
Alibaba’s US-listed shares had also ended slightly higher overnight following the announcement.
Baidu’s Hong Kong-listed shares also climbed about 4% after the company confirmed it was working with Apple to power Apple Intelligence features on iPhones in China.
The development comes weeks after reports emerged that Baidu’s artificial intelligence chip unit, Kunlunxin, was preparing for an initial public offering in Hong Kong that could value the business at about $50 billion.
The partnerships received a regulatory boost after China’s Cyberspace Administration on Wednesday approved Apple Intelligence and six other smartphone-based artificial intelligence services, including those from Huawei Technologies, placing them on its list of authorised AI service providers.
Apple had not responded to CNBC’s request for comment at the time of publication.
The collaboration highlights the growing importance of local AI partnerships for Apple in China, where foreign technology companies must comply with regulatory requirements governing generative artificial intelligence services.
The announcement also comes against the backdrop of intensifying technological competition between China and the United States, with both countries seeking leadership in artificial intelligence. Washington has imposed restrictions on China’s access to advanced semiconductor technology, while Beijing has moved to limit US investment in Chinese technology firms.
Reflecting the strategic importance of the sector, research organisation RAND noted in a report that “AI leadership is becoming central to economic competitiveness, global standard-setting, and the maintenance of democratic governance.”
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