Compatible with Apple, the native HarmonyOS has also taken this step.

HarmonyOS 6 also builds a bridge to the Apple ecosystem.

On October 22nd, Huawei held a special event to officially release the HarmonyOS 6 operating system and simultaneously opened the public beta upgrade for the first batch of over 90 models.

My Huawei Mate 70 Pro+ has received the upgrade push, and the experience in terms of system fluency, intelligence, privacy and security, as well as cross - device collaboration, is more mature and seamless.

The "Calculations" of Mobile Phone Manufacturers to Be Compatible with Apple

HarmonyOS 5 was Huawei's first step in self - developing its operating system. In just the past year, it has rapidly grown into one of the world's three major mobile operating systems. Among them, the number of terminal devices has exceeded 23 million, top - tier applications are fully covered, and it has expanded from the mobile end to the PC end.

However, compared with the more than a decade of development of the iOS and Android operating systems, the native HarmonyOS, that is, the pure - blooded HarmonyOS, still has a relatively shallow foundation. The entire system ecosystem can only be said to be "usable".

The newly released HarmonyOS 6 emphasizes features such as multi - scenario interconnection capabilities, intelligent experience, and privacy protection. It is also a leap from being "usable" to "good to use".

Yu Chengdong, Executive Director of Huawei and Chairman of the Consumer Business Group, mentioned that this time, HarmonyOS 6 has been improved mainly in terms of the ecosystem and user experience. He also said that when upgrading from HarmonyOS 4 to HarmonyOS 6, the fluency has increased by 40%, which feels like getting a new phone.

Another important highlight of this upgrade is that the cross - ecosystem interconnection of HarmonyOS 6 will support seamless data transfer with Apple devices.

This is the first time that Huawei's HarmonyOS has been deeply integrated with the Apple ecosystem at the system level.

According to official information, the new system can transfer data with Apple iOS devices without relying on any network traffic. This function is realized through near - field communication technology, allowing users to transfer data quickly and conveniently between different operating systems.

In response, Yu Chengdong summarized that HarmonyOS 6 is committed to breaking down device boundaries and enabling freer data flow.

Source: Screenshot from the press conference video

In the industry, "Apple device interconnection", or what many netizens think of as "forced compatibility with Apple", has been a major selling point that domestic Android phone brands have been focusing on improving in the past two years.

From the perspective of manufacturers such as Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo, the motivation for making compatibility with Apple a product innovation point boils down to two things: attracting new users and retaining existing ones.

That is, they hope to use software to exchange for hardware and compatibility to exchange for an ecosystem. The ultimate goal is to keep iPhone users within their own ecosystem.

Attracting new users mainly targets high - value (strong spending power and high brand loyalty) iPhone users. For example, vivo has made features like iCloud synchronization and live photo transfer selling points in its customized Android system, reducing the psychological cost for users to switch from iPhones.

This is a shortcut for Android brands to enter the high - end market and a rare high - value increment in the saturated mobile phone market. Even if they can't completely persuade iPhone users to switch to Android phones, they can still turn Apple users into cross - ecosystem users with multiple devices by leveraging the hardware advantages of Android phones, such as fast charging, large - battery long - lasting power, and foldable screens.

Liu Zuohu, the Chief Product Officer of OPPO, publicly stated in 2024, "The number of Apple users is very large, and there are many existing users. It is a great opportunity for every Android brand. We just want to convert Apple users. To put it bluntly, we want to give Apple users another option."

Lu Weibing, the CEO of Xiaomi Group, emphasized in a recent media interview that the Xiaomi 17 is not a copy of the iPhone. He also introduced that currently, Xiaomi is mainly competing for Apple users in the domestic high - end market. The number of users who switched from iPhones to the Xiaomi 17 Pro series has nearly tripled compared to the previous generation.

Retaining users also meets the strategic development needs of Android phone brands themselves. Take Xiaomi as an example. It has been the most determined in the "compatibility with Apple" approach. In its high - end strategy, Xiaomi has proposed to comprehensively benchmark against Apple, making it a so - called "alternative to Apple" in the Android camp.

In practice, Xiaomi has incorporated "compatibility with the Apple ecosystem" into its automotive strategy, allowing iPhone users to use CarPlay and even a more complete digital key experience when driving the Xiaomi SU7.

After this year's annual speech, Lei Jun was even more straightforward when addressing Xiaomi users. "You can make your wishes known to me if you have any needs." "If Apple doesn't do it, can we do it instead?"

Lei Jun also said that he welcomes Apple users to choose Xiaomi phones. "You've used so many generations of iPhones. You can try Xiaomi phones and experience their unique charm."

The "Open Strategy" of Native HarmonyOS

The two considerations of Android phone brands for compatibility with Apple are not only an "open strategy" that native HarmonyOS has also adopted, but also a choice driven by real survival pressure.

On the one hand, native interconnection is one of the core features of pure - blooded HarmonyOS. Since its launch, it has supported seamless cross - ecosystem collaboration among multiple devices, with the goal of connecting all things. This reconstruction of the underlying architecture gives HarmonyOS the ability to surpass traditional operating systems. A more popular way to understand it is "downward compatibility".

Thanks to this, compared with Android manufacturers like Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo, which rely on protocol adaptation for interconnection with Apple, Huawei has truly broken through the system barriers between HarmonyOS, iOS, MacOS, and PadOS, enabling native - level system - level interconnection with the most closed Apple ecosystem. Users with multiple devices no longer need to use third - party software.

This is not only an improvement in user experience but also an attempt at a new standard for interconnection.

On the other hand, native HarmonyOS was once thought to be Huawei's attempt to build a fully closed ecosystem similar to Apple's. For some time, the boundaries of the HarmonyOS ecosystem were limited to Huawei's and its partners' smart devices.

HarmonyOS 6's support for native interconnection with Apple devices blurs and extends these boundaries: HarmonyOS is no longer just the center for "interconnecting Huawei devices". It has taken another step forward on the path of connecting all things and has become a next - generation operating system that combines the advantages of both iOS and Android.

Source: Screenshot from the press conference video

The most obvious manifestation is that after HarmonyOS 6 enables hardware interconnection, it further strengthens software and services. It introduces an intelligent agent framework based on Pangu and DeepSeek. The Xiaoyi assistant has been upgraded to an "intelligent partner" that can make video calls and provide dressing suggestions, and it has connected to application intelligent agents in more than 80 fields such as healthcare, travel, and finance.

This is a direct hit to Apple's repeatedly delayed AI. Compatibility with Apple is precisely to enable these AI capabilities to reach a wider user base and accelerate the evolution of HarmonyOS from a "connection system" to an "intelligent operating system".

However, we need to face an undeniable reality behind this, that is, the survival environment of the Huawei HarmonyOS ecosystem.

Being a latecomer has both cross - generation advantages and the disadvantage of a shallow foundation. For example, according to industry data, since the release of the Pura 80 series, positioned as an imaging flagship, on June 11, 2025, as of October 5th, its activation volume was less than 2 million, far lower than Huawei's target for this series in previous years.

One of the key reasons is often attributed to the fact that native HarmonyOS no longer supports the Android ecosystem. Many potential users, especially Apple users, have concerns about switching devices. They worry about the lack of long - tail applications, difficulties in data migration, and application incompatibility, which affects their purchasing decisions.

Now, HarmonyOS's active compatibility with Apple is precisely to lower this psychological threshold. It sends a clear signal to users: You don't have to abandon your iPhone immediately and can still enjoy the intelligent interconnection experience of HarmonyOS. HarmonyOS is not just an alternative option but can also be a main collaborative partner, thus attracting more users to gradually move towards the HarmonyOS ecosystem.

It is a common view that for native HarmonyOS to pass three crucial tests, the most difficult one is the ecosystem test. HarmonyOS 6 is trying to take a more open - minded approach to make the strong points of HarmonyOS stronger and the weak points weaker, thus attracting and retaining high - value users who pursue efficient multi - smart - device experiences.

This process will definitely be full of greater challenges. For example, can the supporting application experience on the Apple side pass the test? Can cross - ecosystem data security and privacy withstand the test? Can the smooth experience of the Apple system be matched or even partially surpassed?

However, it cannot be denied that this step taken by HarmonyOS is as symbolically significant as it is practically valuable.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Tang Chen's World". Author: Tang Chen. Republished by 36Kr with permission.