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Apple chief executive Tim Cook, centre, meets miHoYo co-founder Liu Wei, left, and an unidentified developer of hit game Genshin Impact, at the Chinese video gaming company’s headquarters in Shanghai on March 30, 2023. Photo: Weibo
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Apple CEO Tim Cook’s whistle-stop tour of Shanghai bolsters ties with Genshin impact creator miHoYo, other local app developers

  • Cook’s latest whistle-stop tour reflects Apple’s efforts to strengthen its relationship with partners in Shanghai and other major markets on the mainland
  • Genshin Impact creator miHoYo said Apple has continued to recognise and support its efforts in the vast global video gaming market
Apple
Lilian Zhang
Lilian Zhang
Why you can trust SCMP
Apple chief executive Tim Cook’s latest whistle-stop tour of partners in China has brought him to the Shanghai headquarters of video gaming company miHoYo, the studio behind App Store blockbuster and 2020 “iPhone Game of the Year” winner Genshin Impact.
“Fun meeting with the creators behind award-winning iPhone and iPad games like Genshin Impact,” Cook wrote in a selfie that he posted on Chinese microblogging service Weibo on Thursday, as he continued to bolster Apple’s commitment to the world’s biggest smartphone and internet market amid escalating tensions between the US and China.

“Thanks to the phenomenal team at miHoYo for showing me how you create immersive fantasy worlds for everyone to enjoy on the App Store,” Cook said in his post, which was in both Chinese and English, and had received 16,000 likes and nearly 1,200 comments on that day. He has more than 1.54 million followers on Weibo.

In response, miHoYo thanked Cook for choosing to visit the company and for Apple’s “continued recognition and support” in a post on the Chinese firm’s official Weibo account on Thursday. “We will continue to work hard to create immersive experiences for players around the world,” the game developer said.

Shanghai-based miHoYo’s logo and official slogan are displayed on a smartphone screen. Photo: Shutterstock
Launched in September 2020, action role-playing game Genshin Impact – also available on Android, Sony Interactive Entertainment’s PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 consoles, the Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Corp’s Windows – generated US$4 billion in global revenue by the end of 2022.
Genshin Impact’s revenue on Apple’s App Store and Google Play hit its highest level in 11 months in February, driven by a series of campaigns and new version releases, rising 18.5 per cent from January. Among Chinese video game developers, miHoYo ranked third in terms of revenue, behind Tencent Holdings and NetEase.

Chinese developers accounted for more than a third of total revenue earned by video gaming companies on App Store and Google Play in February, according to apps market research firm Sensor Tower.

Cook’s latest whistle-stop tour reflects Apple’s efforts to strengthen ties with partners in Shanghai, Beijing and other major markets across the country, as the iPhone continued its strong run as the nation’s top-selling handset in January and in the fourth quarter last year.

Chinese developers account for growing share of overseas mobile video game market

He underscored how the metropolis and other cities across China are “very important to Apple”, while pledging to bring “more new products and business” in the country.

In addition, he said Apple and its Chinese partners will focus on “low-carbon transformation, supply chain stability, and manufacturing R&D [research and development] and commercial retail”.

In Shanghai, Cook also visited the Apple Store at Global Harbour, a large shopping centre in the city’s Putuo district, and met app developers at Apple’s Design and Development Accelerator, the company’s first in China, according to his Weibo posts.

The Apple chief executive kicked off his week-long, post-pandemic visit to China over the weekend, as part of a delegation of C-level executives and scholars from overseas attending the government-organised China Development Forum (CDF) in Beijing.

Apple CEO Tim Cook meets new Chinese premier Li Qiang

At the three-day event, which concluded on Monday, Cook met China’s new premier Li Qiang, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and other top officials, who reassured the delegation’s representatives that China would continue to open up and provide a top-tier business environment in spite of changes in geopolitical affairs.
The charm offensive by senior government leaders at the CDF has come at a time when Apple and its contract manufacturers have started to relocate more production lines out of the mainland and boost investments in countries like Vietnam and India.

The day before Cook’s visit to MiHoYo’s offices, he met Chen Jining, who replaced Li as Shanghai’s Party Secretary, according to local media reports.

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