The AI mobile phone jointly developed by ByteDance and ZTE will be launched in early December, featuring high-privilege Agent capabilities.

The mobile phone industry, which has been dormant for several years, is ushering in a new chapter. (The original English expression might be "ushering in a new chapter")

We've learned from multiple sources, including the supply chain, that the AI mobile phone jointly developed by ByteDance and ZTE Corporation is set to be launched in early December. ByteDance takes the lead in implanting the Doubao large model and defining AI interaction functions, while ZTE is in charge of hardware definition, product design, and manufacturing.

People familiar with the matter told us that compared with current mainstream AI mobile phones, through the in - depth cooperation between ByteDance and ZTE's Nubia team, this phone has undergone more in - depth integration and reconstruction at the hardware, software, and even operating system levels. It is defined as an "AI Native Phone".

Its core differentiation lies in the high - privilege Agent capability. The mobile phone system has an embedded AI Agent with higher system privileges than ordinary apps. It can execute complex instructions across applications and complete complex tasks, significantly enhancing the user experience compared to the current "smartphone + large model/AI application" combination.

Multiple industry analysts predict that with its differentiated interaction experience, this phone is expected to become a hit in the industry by the end of the year.

According to industry news, the first - generation models are being delivered gradually, with an overall inventory of about 30,000 units. They will be officially sold after the launch. The second - generation models have also been approved for development and will be launched in the first half of next year, with further upgrades in AI capabilities and hardware configurations.

Why does ByteDance cross - border cooperate in the mobile phone field?

ByteDance's mobile phone business started in the first half of 2024. As previously reported by LatePost, initially, ByteDance aimed to be a large - model and AI provider, but this plan didn't progress smoothly. So, ByteDance decided to enter the market directly and develop a mobile phone deeply integrated with the Doubao large model.

ZTE's Nubia finally became the partner. As a global mainstream communication equipment and terminal manufacturer, ZTE has profound hardware R & D capabilities and mature supply chain management. For ByteDance, ZTE can provide a full - set solution from industrial design to manufacturing. Its Nubia brand has also accumulated rich experience in imaging technology and performance tuning. Its technological accumulation in large - scale industrial manufacturing, differentiated hardware definition, and system levels precisely makes up for ByteDance's shortcomings in hardware implementation.

The upcoming AI mobile phone is ByteDance's latest achievement in the AI hardware field. ByteDance CEO Liang Rubo said at the all - staff meeting in February this year that the three major goals of ByteDance's AI in 2025 are: exploring the upper limit of intelligence, exploring new UI interaction forms, and strengthening the scale effect. The AI mobile phone is an important carrier for "exploring new UI interaction forms".

The AI mobile phone project is led by ByteDance's Ocean team in the AI hardware division. This team is also exploring multiple AI devices, including the Ola Friend smart earphones launched last year and the in - development AI glasses.

The members of the Ocean team include some hardware product teams that ByteDance has acquired over the years, such as the Hammer mobile phone team, the VR headset PICO team, and the Ola Dance smart earphone team.

ByteDance hopes to explore the "trinity" of terminal AI layout, which combines large - model capabilities, super apps, and hardware terminals. With the launch of the AI mobile phone, ByteDance's full - stack AI layout, which has been built over the years, becomes more complete:

Computing power layer: Volcengine provides underlying computing power support;

Model layer: The Doubao large model provides core capabilities;

Application layer: Super apps like Douyin and Doubao provide scenarios and traffic;

Hardware layer: Ola Friend earphones, AI glasses, and AI mobile phones build physical entrances.

The advantages of the full - stack AI lie in two aspects. On one hand, it involves the in - depth integration of software and hardware, such as allocating physical buttons on the phone for AI functions or setting up more proactive AI interactions at the system level. On the other hand, it means a firm control over the system and entrances, which is also the most core reason for ByteDance to enter the mobile phone market.

ByteDance's path is extremely similar to Google's. Google has built a system - level AI barrier through self - developed Tensor chips, the Gemini model, the Android system, and Pixel hardware. ByteDance hopes to deliver the capabilities of the large model to users by controlling the hardware entrance, thus deepening its moat.

The AI Native Phone Reshapes the Industry Landscape

2024 is regarded as the first year of AI mobile phones, and by 2026, the industry generally predicts that killer - level AI applications will emerge. Against this backdrop, the competition landscape of domestic AI mobile phones has initially formed three major tiers:

Pioneer camp (Honor, OPPO, Huawei): Full - stack self - developed large models + operating system - level intelligent agents;

Ecosystem collaborators (Xiaomi, vivo): Focus on vertical scenarios and hardware innovation;

Cross - border entrants (ByteDance, ZTE Nubia): Explore high - privilege AI Agents and new types of interactions.

ByteDance's entry brings new variables to the previously stagnant mobile phone market.

Compared with traditional mobile phone manufacturers, ByteDance has natural advantages in recommendation algorithms, natural language processing, and understanding user needs. If this AI Native Phone can truly achieve a differentiated experience, it may provide a new evolution sample for the industry. This evolution means that the interaction logic of mobile phone operating systems will shift from "clicking icons" in the Internet era to "intention recognition".

For ByteDance's partner ZTE, this is also an important opportunity. ZTE has a great chance to find a new growth pole in the AI era. Through in - depth joint R & D with ByteDance, ZTE Nubia can reshape its software and hardware capabilities and has the opportunity to become a top - tier mobile phone brand in the AI era.

Looking back at ByteDance's hardware development path, it is actually a path of "finding new traffic entrances".

From the earliest acquisition of Smartisan Technology in an attempt to seize the mobile Internet entrance, to the huge investment in acquiring PICO to bet on the metaverse entrance, and now the intensive layout of AI earphones, glasses, and mobile phones to seize the large - model entrance, ByteDance's core logic has never changed: they don't want to be just an app developer relying on others' operating systems in the next computing platform era.

The AI mobile phone is still in its early stage, which is both a challenge and an opportunity for ByteDance and ZTE to face together.

Anyway, ByteDance is back at the hardware game table. Different from going it alone in the past, this time, they bring the best model and find a suitable partner.