Despite being a big market for Apple devices, China is yet to get Apple Intelligence due to regional restrictions. If reports are to be believed, Apple is working to integrate DeepSeek’s artificial intelligence (AI) models into Apple Intelligence.
The American tech giant is testing the AI firm’s reasoning-focused DeepSeek R1 AI model to see if it can be an alternative to the company’s native AI models. If the rumour is true, this might offer Apple an opportunity to introduce the features in the Chinese market.
DeepSeek R1 for Apple Intelligence
Fixed Focus Digital, a Chinese tipster, claimed that Apple CEO Tim Cook is keen on collaborating with DeepSeek. The Chinese AI firm released its open-source reasoning model with an MIT licence that allows for commercial usage. The tech giant might integrate it to replace its native AI models as well as ChatGPT features within Apple Intelligence.
China’s Policy
Under its stringent policy, China mandates that any AI-powered device, software, or platform first get a certificate from the government. The country does not pass any AI models that are not built in China or run on Chinese servers. This regulatory hurdle did not allow Apple from releasing its AI features in the country with the iOS 18.1 update.
How Apple can benefit from DeepSeek
Firstly, it would be easier for Apple to get clearance from regulatory body since DeepSeek is a Chinese model.
Secondly, since DeepSeek R1 is available in the public domain, Apple can use it as an on-device model to replace its models, while maintaining the AI features. This spares the company from hosting the AI data on third-party servers, and it will be able to offer data security to users.
Thirdly, due to the low application programming interface (API) costs of DeepSeek R1 and the local inference value, the American company could also introduce it in Europe where Apple Intelligence is not available as well as in the US.
Also Read: Top Apple Devices Expected To Launch In Early 2025
Impact
Since the iPhone 16 series was hard-sold on the back of Apple Intelligence, the company has significantly lost market share in China. Therefore, the integration of Apple Intelligence with China-based DeepSeek is likely to facilitate bounce-back of Apple devices in China.
Note: The information is not verified as nothing has been announced officially. It remains to be seen if the Apple-DeepSeek partnership would see the light of the day.
