Apple chief executive Tim Cook returned to Beijing on Monday, his second visit to mainland China this year, as speculation swirls over the domestic launch of the US tech giant’s on-device artificial intelligence (AI) system.
Cook’s latest visit to the country saw him accompanied by famous Chinese photographer and filmmaker Chen Man, as well as meet with students from China Agricultural University and Zhejiang University at a farm in the Beijing district of Shunyi, according to posts published by the executive on microblogging platform Weibo and local media reports.
In his latest Weibo post on Tuesday, Cook said he visited an Apple Store in downtown Beijing to meet customers and the company’s local staff.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday regarding Cook’s itinerary in his latest visit. There were also no media releases from any Chinese ministry about meeting with Cook this week.
The Apple chief executive’s latest visit to the mainland reflects his efforts to keep his ear to the ground in one of the company’s largest markets, as analysts see consumer enthusiasm for the iPhone 16 has been tepid because of the delayed local availability of Apple Intelligence.