Apple Enables Qwen AI Integration With Siri On Macs In China
Apple has published a guide explaining how eligible Mac users in mainland China can connect Alibaba’s Qwen artificial intelligence service to the company’s Siri digital assistant and Writing Tools feature.
The Mac-specific arrangement could help Apple compete in China’s AI PC market. The company has been losing market share as domestic manufacturers such as Lenovo promote locally developed AI features.
Qwen Expands Apple’s AI Capabilities
Qwen is Alibaba’s family of generative AI models. The technology can create text and images, as well as analyse documents, photos and other material in response to user prompts.
Apple’s updated Chinese-language guide says users who opt in can access Qwen through Siri for more detailed responses to certain requests. These include analysing photos and documents.
Meanwhile, Writing Tools can use the service to create text or images from a description. This gives Mac users additional AI-powered functions within Apple’s existing software environment.
Mac Users In China Can Access Qwen
The extension is designed for Macs running macOS 26.6 or later, subject to China-specific conditions. Users must activate the extension and sign in to a Qwen account.
According to Apple’s guide, Alibaba cannot use the materials processed through the service to train or improve its models.
The integration therefore gives Apple a locally compliant route to provide more advanced document, image and content-creation capabilities. At the same time, Apple retains control of the Mac interface.
For Alibaba, integrating Qwen with Apple’s built-in software could expand the AI service’s reach beyond its own applications and cloud services.
Apple Faces Stronger Competition In China
Apple’s Mac business faces growing competition in China’s PC market. Mac shipments in mainland China fell 9% year on year in the first quarter to about 800,000 units, according to Omdia.
Apple held 9% of the PC market during the period. Lenovo had a 31% share, while fast-growing Huawei accounted for 16%.
Lenovo has made its Tianxi personal AI agent a central part of its AI PC strategy. Meanwhile, Huawei is developing AI functions across its HarmonyOS ecosystem.
Against that backdrop, Qwen integration could give Apple a way to strengthen the AI capabilities available on its Macs in China without relying on the same approach used in other markets.
Qwen Integration Extends Alibaba’s Reach
Alibaba has said Qwen will be incorporated into Apple Intelligence across iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro software in China. However, Apple’s newly published guide currently covers Macs only.
Alibaba also released Qwen3.8-Max this week, describing the 2.4-trillion-parameter model as its most capable model to date.
Apple’s guide does not identify which Qwen model will power the Mac extension.
With inputs from Reuters
