TMTPOST--Microsoft has confirmed that its employees in China will be required to use Apple iPhones for workplace identity login, phasing out the use of Android devices internally, starting in September.

This decision, affecting hundreds of Microsoft China employees, is due to the restrictions to use Google mobile services locally.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the plans, citing the lack of Android alternatives as the sole motivator. The company has taken deep roots in China since starting operations in 1992 and running a major research center. However, evolving regulations limiting certain services have prompted this strategic shift to Apple's mobile offering where authentication needs can be simply and securely met.

Microsoft, which set up its Beijing representative office in 1992, has a significant presence in the Chinese market. During its 30th-anniversary event in 2022, Microsoft announced plans to increase investments in talent acquisition, campus expansion, education, and local ecosystem development.

Additionally, the company planned to upgrade and expand its campuses in Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou over the next three to five years.

However, as U.S.-China competition in AI technology intensifies, Microsoft has been adjusting its strategy in China. In May, reports indicated that Microsoft relocated 700 to 800 employees working on AI projects from China to other regions, including the U.S. and Australia. This move affected staff in the Microsoft Asia-Pacific Research and Development Group and the Azure AI team.

In June, Microsoft President Brad Smith confirmed during a hearing that the company has been downsizing its engineering operations in China, with plans to reassign 700 to 800 employees who would need to leave China to retain their jobs. Smith highlighted that China accounts for only 1.5% of Microsoft's global sales, which totaled $212 billion in the previous fiscal year.