Apple has published a guide letting eligible Mac users in mainland China connect Alibaba's Qwen AI service to Siri and Writing Tools. The move gives Apple a locally compliant way to add generative-AI features as it loses ground in China's AI PC market, and follows Beijing's approval of Apple Intelligence for use in the country.
Apple has published a guide explaining how eligible Mac users in mainland China can connect Alibaba's Qwen artificial-intelligence service to Siri and Writing Tools, according to Reuters. The arrangement gives Apple a locally compliant route to offer more capable document, image, and content-creation features while keeping control of the Mac interface.
How the integration works
Qwen is Alibaba's family of generative-AI models, which can create text and images and analyze documents, photos, and other material in response to user prompts. Apple's updated Chinese-language guide says users who opt in can use Qwen through Siri for more detailed responses to some requests, including analysis of photos and documents, while Writing Tools can draw on the service to create text or images from a description.
The extension is intended for Macs running macOS 26.6 or later, subject to China-specific conditions, and users must activate it and sign in to a Qwen account. Alibaba cannot use those materials to train or improve its models, according to the guide.
Apple loses ground in China's AI PC market
Apple's Mac-specific arrangement could help it compete in China's AI PC market, where it has been losing market share to domestic manufacturers such as Lenovo, which have promoted locally developed AI features. Mac shipments in mainland China fell 9% in the first quarter year on year to about 800,000 units, leaving Apple with 9% of the PC market versus Lenovo's 31% and Huawei's 16%, according to Omdia data cited by Reuters. Lenovo has made its Tianxi personal AI agent central to its AI-PC strategy, while Huawei is building AI functions across its HarmonyOS ecosystem.
A regulatory hurdle clears
The integration follows China's Cyberspace Administration officially registering Apple Intelligence for use in mainland China on July 15, 2026, clearing a hurdle that had kept Apple's AI ambitions in the country largely grounded. Alibaba's US-listed shares climbed roughly 4% in premarket trading after that registration announcement.
Alibaba has said Qwen will be incorporated into Apple Intelligence across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro software in China, though Apple's newly published guide covers Macs only. Alibaba this week released Qwen3.8-Max, a 2.4-trillion-parameter model it says is its most capable to date, but Apple's guide does not identify which Qwen model will power the Mac extension.
Apple's stake in the Chinese market
The timing lines up with Apple's broader push in China. The company posted $20.5 billion in Greater China revenue during the second quarter of 2026, a 28% jump year over year, helping it reclaim its position as the No. 2 smartphone vendor in the country after domestic rivals moved faster to add AI features. For Alibaba, meanwhile, integration with Apple's built-in software could broaden Qwen's reach beyond its own apps and cloud services.
Sources: Investing.com, Crypto Briefing
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