A new official filing marks the conclusion of another regulatory hurdle that has been preventing Apple Intelligence from launching in Apple’s crucial Chinese market.
In mid-June 2026, Apple’s Chinese partner Alibaba unveiled its latest AI model and, most significantly, revealed that it was now compatible with Apple Intelligence. Now according to Reuters, China’s cyberspace regulator has allowed Apple Intelligence to be registered for use on iPhones in the region.
China has complex requirements for regulatory approval, and sufficiently so that US firms typically need to involve a local partner. It’s not certain yet whether this latest listing is the final step toward Apple Intelligence launching in China, but it appears to be, and it marks more than two years of effort from Apple.
Apple has not commented on the regulator’s listing, and Alibaba has only confirmed certain details that were already presumed. Specifically, the company stated that its new Qwen AI model will be integrated into Apple Intelligence, when that becomes available for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro users in China.
The report also cites an unspecified source saying that Apple Intelligence will also incorporate technologies from Baidu. This has also been presumed, as despite seemingly choosing against Baidu as a full partner in 2024, Apple reportedly signed with the company for specific functions such as Visual Intelligence.
Apple Intelligence has effectively required partnerships with local companies even though Apple has been able to release iOS in the country without the same level of scrutiny. This is because China has restrictive laws about generative AI software, large language models, and data privacy.
It’s sufficiently difficult to obtain Chinese government approval for any such services, that OpenAI is banned in the country. Apple needed to partner with firms such as Alibaba and Baidu which already had certain approvals. Use of these Chinese firms, though, also raises issues over how Apple Intelligence will be censored in the country.
Apple appears to have worked through all the technical issues, though, and has been waiting only for regulatory approval. That’s because in March 2026, Apple Intelligence was briefly enabled in China, apparently by mistake.
More than $18.4 Million Available to Expand HealthySteps, an Early Childhood Mental Health Initiative that Screened 108,000 New Yorkers for Maternal Depression in 2025
Office of Mental Health Awards $350,000 in ‘Collaborative Care’ Grants to Help OBGYN and Family Medicine Practices Provide Behavioral Health Support to Patients
The New York State Office of Mental Health recently announced the availability of more than $18.4 million to expand HealthySteps, a successful early childhood mental health initiative that provides tens of thousands of critical depression screenings for new mothers annually. The agency also announced $350,000 in awards through the Collaborative Care program to help OBGYN and family medicine practices provide behavioral health support to their patients.
“It is critical that we focus on maternal mental health and develop the preventative services and supports for families in our state that address the long-standing inequities in care,” Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said. “Initiatives like HealthySteps, Collaborative Care, Project TEACH and others are providing often life-saving screenings that are also connecting New Yorkers to both prenatal and postpartum supports. Under Governor Kathy Hochul’s leadership, we are increasing prevention services to improve outcomes and eliminating disparities in care.”
“I am grateful to Governor Hochul for her leadership in advancing maternal mental health initiatives in New York State that expand access to critical screenings and services,” Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said. “In recognition of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Week, we are reminded that every mother deserves compassion, support, and quality care. We remain committed to ensuring that all mothers feel supported, heard, and empowered.”
The state Office of Mental Health made available more than $18.4 million to continue expanding HealthySteps, an innovative program integrating behavioral health professionals with pediatric practices to provide early childhood mental and physical health care. The additional funding will provide 38 new awards to the 152 sites now funded, increasing statewide capacity of the program by about 25 percent once all are fully implemented.
HealthySteps pairs behavioral health specialists with pediatricians, who are often the first point-of-contact new caregivers have with the health care system. These specialists then serve as part of the primary care team during well visits, screening children and parents for a variety of concerns including behavioral health, developmental concerns and social determinants of health and family needs and then linking them to supports.
In 2025 alone, HealthySteps sites completed more than 108,000 screenings for perinatal depression, identifying cases and connecting parents to support when needed. Altogether, these sites conducted more than 500,000 screenings, helping to track food insecurity, housing instability, substance misuse, tobacco use, transportation, utility, and interpersonal safety.
In addition to the funding availability, OMH also awarded seven $50,000 one-time Collaborative Care grants to help OBGYN and family medicine practices implement evidence-based integrated healthcare for their patients and decrease racial disparities. Award recipients by region include:
Hudson Valley
New York City
Jamaica Hospital in Queens
Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx
William F. Ryan Community Health Center, Inc., in Manhattan
Western New York
Jericho Road Ministries, Inc., in Buffalo
Neighborhood Health Center of WNY in Buffalo
Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center in Niagara Falls
This funding will expand the psychiatric collaborative care model at these practices so they can increase perinatal depression and anxiety screenings and integrated treatment — a recommendation included in the state’s first-ever maternal mental health report. Directed by Governor Hochul and released by OMH in November, this report detailed the challenges pregnant and postpartum individuals are facing and made recommendations for improvements statewide.
Previously, Governor Hochul secured a $2.9 million increase to expand Project TEACH, an initiative that assists maternal health providers with screening and treatment of maternal depression and related mood and anxiety disorders during pregnancy and the postpartum period within their scope of practice. Adopted as part of the FY 2026 State Budget, the expansion has allowed a wider range of front-line practitioners – including doulas, midwives, therapists, WIC staff, home visiting nurses, lactation consultants, caseworkers and others working directly with the perinatal population – to obtain professional training and support in assessment for consultations with a reproductive psychiatrist or psychologist, and accessing resources.
Every year, an estimated 500,000 – about one in five – mothers in the United States experience perinatal mood and anxiety disorders during pregnancy or in the first year postpartum. About 75 percent of these individuals are not diagnosed or treated, which can lead to high-risk pregnancies, poor childhood cognitive development due to substance use, self-harm, or suicide.
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