Do Son 
According to a report by Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, Apple is expected to enhance its “Apple Intelligence” capabilities specifically for the Chinese market in the upcoming iOS 18.6 update, with planned integration of artificial intelligence technologies developed by Alibaba and Baidu.
Previously, Apple had introduced support for Simplified Chinese in the “Apple Intelligence” feature with the iOS 18.4 release; however, this support was limited to select functionalities and did not include the AI technologies developed in partnership with OpenAI.
With the iOS 18.6 update, Apple is anticipated to incorporate advanced AI capabilities powered by Baidu and Alibaba for users in China. Baidu’s Ernie Bot is expected to serve as the primary cloud-based AI collaboration engine, while Alibaba’s AI technology will be employed for content moderation, ensuring that AI-generated outputs comply with Chinese regulatory standards.
In addition to Baidu and Alibaba, Apple has reportedly explored potential collaborations with other Chinese AI firms, including Tencent, ByteDance, and Zhipu AI. Talks were also held with DeepSeek, although no formal agreement was ultimately reached.
Apple is expected to begin rolling out test versions of iOS 18.6 in late May, with the official release likely to follow during or shortly after WWDC 2025.
Due to the highly competitive landscape of AI adoption in the Chinese smartphone market, Apple has been relatively slow to gain traction. Progress on its updated Siri functionality has been hindered, and its AI services must also conform to stringent local regulations within China.
A similar situation has emerged in Europe, where “Apple Intelligence” features are currently unavailable due to data-related concerns. Apple is reportedly in ongoing discussions with European regulators, seeking a pathway to introduce these features to the EU market.
As of now, “Apple Intelligence” does not yet support Traditional Chinese. Although future support is expected, it remains uncertain whether
