Latest scoop: Apple's foldable iPhone will use Samsung screens.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo published a blog post on Tuesday, stating that Apple has decided to adopt Samsung Display's (SDC) crease-free solution for its first foldable iPhone and plans to mass-produce the first foldable-screen iPhone in the second half of 2026.

As the world's largest smartphone manufacturer by market value, Apple has been slow to launch a foldable-screen phone, lagging behind other mainstream phone manufacturers in this field. The market is closely watching Apple's entry into the foldable-screen field and its impact on the industrial chain.

Well-known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo published a blog post on Tuesday, stating that Apple has decided to abandon self-development and adopt Samsung Display's (SDC) crease-free solution for its first foldable iPhone and plans to mass-produce the first foldable-screen iPhone in the second half of 2026.

Samsung Display is a company under the Samsung Group that focuses on the display technology field and is one of the world's leading display panel manufacturers.

Ming-Chi Kuo said that this decision will not only help deepen the supply chain cooperation between Apple and Samsung Display but will also surely benefit the suppliers closely cooperating with Samsung Display, especially Fine M-Tec, a South Korean supplier of display metal plates.

The durability of crease-free displays has always been a key challenge for foldable phones. Ming-Chi Kuo pointed out that the display metal plate is the key design to achieve a crease-free effect, which can disperse and control the stress generated by bending and reduce the risk of material fatigue.

Ming-Chi Kuo also said that Fine M-Tec is expected to start shipping display metal plates for foldable iPhones in the first quarter of 2026. The unit price of the metal plate is about $30 - $35, and the shipment volume in 2026 is expected to reach 13 million to 15 million.

As a top supplier of Samsung's foldable devices, Fine M-Tec, which is listed in South Korea, is expected to receive more than 80% of Apple's display metal plate orders.

Due to his multiple accurate predictions of information related to Apple products, Ming-Chi Kuo is known as the "world's strongest Apple analyst" and the "king of Apple leaks".

In March this year, Ming-Chi Kuo said that he expects the price of Apple's first foldable iPhone to be between $2000 and $2500. He also pointed out that due to design and space limitations, Face ID may be cancelled, and Touch ID may reappear on the side button.

Ming-Chi Kuo also revealed last month that Apple's supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry (Foxconn) is expected to officially start producing the "foldable-screen iPhone" at the end of the third quarter or the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2025.

As Apple's largest source of revenue, in the second fiscal quarter of fiscal year 2025 ending in late March this year, Apple's iPhone revenue reached $46.84 billion, higher than $45.96 billion in the same period last year. If Apple launches a foldable-screen phone, iPhone revenue is expected to further increase.

This article is from the WeChat public account "Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily", author: Bian Chun. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.