In an unexpected turn, some users in Apple devices in China recently spotted the company’s AI-powered “Apple Intelligence” features appearing in their settings. The availability, however, was short-lived and reportedly unintentional.
According to a report by a media publication, the features were mistakenly rolled out before receiving the required regulatory approvals in China. The tools are currently restricted in the region due to strict local policies governing AI technologies. Once the issue was identified, Apple quickly disabled access.
The report highlights that the features were not linked to the iOS 26.5 beta update, indicating a backend error rather than a planned release. It also notes that Apple has had these features ready for months but is still awaiting clearance from authorities. The company is not expected to launch them anytime soon.
One key challenge lies in compliance. Some Apple Intelligence capabilities rely on services like Google reverse image search, which is not permitted in China. This creates a barrier for Apple to deploy its full AI suite in the country.
To address this, Apple is working with Alibaba to localise its AI offerings. However, approval from China’s Cyberspace Administration (CAC), which evaluates and authorises AI models, is still pending. These delays are increasing competition from local brands like Huawei and Xiaomi, which already offer AI-driven features.
Meanwhile, global users are also waiting for upgrades. Apple is expected to preview an enhanced AI-powered Siri at its Worldwide Developers Conference on June 8, 2026. Internally, the upgraded assistant is being tested under the codename “Campo” and is designed to better understand user requests, perform in-app actions, access news, and search the web using Apple’s own models.
Despite the brief rollout in China, Apple’s AI ambitions remain on hold in the region until regulatory hurdles are cleared.
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