Apple CEO Tim Cook is in Shanghai, China to celebrate the upcoming launch of the iPhone Air in the country, and during his visit, he met with Pop Mart CEO Wang Ning and The Monsters creator Kasing Lung.
On Chinese social network Weibo, Cook said that Lung demonstrated how he sketches his characters on his iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil. Lung is the designer behind the Labubu character that has become wildly popular worldwide.
During the meeting, Lung gifted Cook a one-of-a-kind Labubu modeled after Cook. The Labubu features white fur, glasses, black jeans, a blue shirt, sneakers, and a tiny iPhone 17.
Cook, meanwhile, said that Labubu “now has her own new iPhone 17 Pro in Cosmic Orange,” and Lung drew a picture of Cook meeting Labubu.
Lung shared a selfie with Cook on Instagram, and also offered a closer look at Cook’s unique “Tim Cook Labubu.”
While in China, Cook also stopped by the Apple Pudong retail location, met with the Lilith Games team behind AFK Journey, and visited Wang Feifei on the set of her new music video, which was filmed in a single shot using an iPhone 17 Pro.
iPhone Air preorders are set to launch in China on October 17, with a launch to follow on October 22. The iPhone Air was delayed in China because Apple needed regulatory approval for an iPhone without a physical SIM.
At 5.6mm, the iPhone Air is too thin for a physical SIM slot, and so it will be the first eSIM iPhone that Apple offers in China.
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