Apple may have revealed the release date of iOS 27.3 Beta 1 in a newsroom press release on its China site, where they announced that Apple Intelligence will be available for testing from 4 November.
Apple's suite of AI tools, branded Apple Intelligence, were released in September 2024 with iOS 18 to most of the world. However, due to generative AI regulations in China, the suite of intelligence tools did not land in the nation.
Apple and China are now finally moving forward, with the company now able to offer Apple Intelligence in beta to its Chinese customers.
In a Press Release, titled 'Apple Intelligence is about to land in China', the company says that its AI features "will be open for testing from November 4."
This will be available as a Developer Beta to anyone who is part of the beta testing programme and signed up with an Apple Developer Account.
Which Apple Intelligence features are Chinese users getting?
- Visual Intelligence
- Writing Tools
- Genmoji
- Apple Intelligence Siri (with rainbow glow)
- Type to Siri
- Live Translation
- Image Cleanup
- Natural language search
- Memory Movies in Photos
- Priority Emails
- Notification Summaries
- Reduce Interruptions
- Priority Notifications
Qiuanwen Chatbot Integration
Apple has integrated Alibaba's Qianwen intelligence models across iOS to power some Apple Intelligence features.
Also known as Qwen in the west, it is an AI LLM model that works in a similar way to Siri AI, Gemini or ChatGPT.
Its integration with Apple Intelligence includes writing tools, where the user can ask Qianwen to draft or proofread content.
Qianwen is also integrated into Siri, which Apple says gives Siri "extensive knowledge to assist users". This sounds like it might work in a similar way to the ChatGPT Siri extension where Apple Intelligence users in iOS 18 and 26 could invoke ChatGPT through Siri if Apple's own chatbot could not answer a query.
Users can log into their Qianwen account to use with Siri, just like how the extension with ChatGPT worked.
Siri AI is absent
Notably, Apple has not been able to introduce its overhauled, more intelligent version of Siri and latest Apple Intelligence features to China. This includes most AI features the company introduced in June at WWDC26.
In their recent press release, Apple said:
This update does not include Siri AI and other next-generation Apple intelligence features announced by Apple at WWDC 2026.
Back in June, Apple said that these features were not available as they were still working through regulatory requirements. The continued absence suggests they are still working with Chinese regulators.
When does iOS 27.3 release?
Apple has confirmed that iOS 27.3 will release to the public next month, at some point in December.
This series of Apple Intelligence features will be open for testing with the latest iOS developer beta version from November 4, and will be launched for Chinese users when iOS 27.3 is officially released in December.
In addition to these new Apple Intelligence features for Chinese users, iOS 27.3 could also bring the overhauled Health app to US users.
When Apple previewed the Health app redesign at its September iPhone event, the company confirmed that it will be available to Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhones by the end of this year.
As iOS 27.3 releases in December, it will likely be update that introduces the overhaul. The new Health app has already been in testing during the iOS 27.2 beta cycle in the US, but was removed for public launch.
It could return in iOS 27.3 Beta 1 next week, for what could be the final testing phase ahead of public launch. It is only expected in the United States, with the current Health app experience remaining for international users. A wider rollout could come in 2027.
