The U.S. company originally sought a local partner because regulators in China must vet all AI models, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the talks. Google was that local U.S. partner.
The report calls the discussions between the two companies "exploratory," and does not clarify whether Apple had other business options in China.
Baidu has support from the Chinese government to raise the level of competition of AI-enabled services and devices, from laptops to smartphones.
Baidu, which is considered in China to be among the leaders in AI, has developed its own version of OpenAI's ChatGPT.
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Although it has had more than 30 AI-related acquisitions since 2010, Apple still may need assistance in reaching its goal of keeping up with competitors and integrating AI into search and other features.
Apple's latest acquisition earlier this year is called DarwinAI, a startup focused on making AI systems that run smaller and faster.
Some analysts and executives say Apple has acquired the most AI businesses of any major technology company.
The advertising formats -- two types of ads in the search tab and on the search-results page -- were first reported by Business Insider, which cited people familiar with the effort.