Apple Facing Hurdles in Adapting Baidu AI Models for China, The Information Reports

FILE PHOTO: A logo is pictured outside the Apple Fifth Avenue store as Apple's Vision Pro headset is presented there, in Manhattan in New York City, US, February 2, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A logo is pictured outside the Apple Fifth Avenue store as Apple's Vision Pro headset is presented there, in Manhattan in New York City, US, February 2, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
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Apple Facing Hurdles in Adapting Baidu AI Models for China, The Information Reports

FILE PHOTO: A logo is pictured outside the Apple Fifth Avenue store as Apple's Vision Pro headset is presented there, in Manhattan in New York City, US, February 2, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A logo is pictured outside the Apple Fifth Avenue store as Apple's Vision Pro headset is presented there, in Manhattan in New York City, US, February 2, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

f Apple and Baidu are working to add AI features to iPhones sold in China, but are facing hurdles that could hurt the tech giant's phone sales in the country, The Information reported on Wednesday.

The companies, which are adapting Baidu's large language models for iPhone users, are grappling with issues such as the LLMs' understanding of prompts and accuracy in responding to common scenarios, according to the report.

Apple and Baidu did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Sales of iPhone in China slipped 0.3%, while rival Huawei posted a 42% surge in sales in the third quarter, research firm IDC had said in October, as competition intensifies in the world's largest smartphone market.

Apple's long-awaited iPhone 16 launch in September had drawn scorn in China for its lack of artificial intelligence features.

Also, Apple's privacy policies do not allow collection of data from iPhone users who make AI-related queries, but Baidu wants to save and analyze this data, according to the report.

Baidu's most advanced model, Ernie 4.0, is being employed as the foundation for Apple's genAI services on the iPhone, Mac and iPad, The Information said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Siri will also use Baidu's AI models, according to the report.



BlackBerry Forecasts Lower Annual Revenue due to Weak Demand for Cybersecurity Services

The Blackberry logo is seen on a smarphone in front of a displayed stock graph in this illustration taken February 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
The Blackberry logo is seen on a smarphone in front of a displayed stock graph in this illustration taken February 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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BlackBerry Forecasts Lower Annual Revenue due to Weak Demand for Cybersecurity Services

The Blackberry logo is seen on a smarphone in front of a displayed stock graph in this illustration taken February 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
The Blackberry logo is seen on a smarphone in front of a displayed stock graph in this illustration taken February 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Canada's BlackBerry forecast a revenue decline in fiscal 2026 on Wednesday, as it anticipated weak spending on its cybersecurity products.

US-listed shares of the Waterloo, Ontario-based company fell 4% in premarket trading.

BlackBerry, once a dominant force in the smartphone market, has transitioned into selling software for devices and autonomous vehicles.

But enterprises are now reining their technology spending and optimizing costs, which in turn is affecting firms like BlackBerry.

The company forecast revenue to be between $504 million and $534 million for the financial year ending in February next year, lower than $534.9 million it reported in fiscal 2025, Reuters reported.

BlackBerry expects its cybersecurity unit, which provides intelligent security software to enterprises and governments, to report annual revenue between $230 million and $240 million, lower than the $272.6 million in the previous financial year.

The company posted revenue of $141.7 million for the fourth quarter, lower than $152.9 million it reported a year ago.

BlackBerry said it completed the sale of the Cylance business, which uses machine learning to preempt security breaches, to Arctic Wolf for $160 million.

The company sold the Cylance business to redirect its focus to high-growth areas, and as the unit required significant levels of investment and was facing strong competition.