Tech firms race to launch AI powered ‘agent’ smartphones in China

Several technology companies are competing to launch a new generation of smartphones capable of carrying out everyday tasks, from ordering food to drafting messages, through simple voice commands powered by artificial intelligence.

Several technology companies are competing to launch a new generation of smartphones capable of carrying out everyday tasks, from ordering food to drafting messages, through simple voice commands powered by artificial intelligence.

If widely adopted, phones built around these AI agents could mark a major shift in how people interact with their devices. However, the technology also threatens to reduce the influence of major apps, a prospect that has not set well with some of the companies behind them.

At the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai this past weekend, at least three companies unveiled what are being called agentic smartphones, offering a glimpse of where the industry may be headed.

Smartphone maker Nubia introduced its NaviX Ultra, built around Doubao, the widely used AI chatbot developed by ByteDance, the company behind TikTok. Nubia described the launch as the start of a new era for AI agent smartphones. This follows a limited prototype run in December, known as the Doubao Phone, which sold out quickly. That early version could carry out simple tasks across multiple apps using voice commands, including food orders and price comparisons. Shortly after its release, however, major platforms including Alibaba, Tencent and JD.com restricted the assistant’s access to their services, effectively limiting its functionality. ByteDance later disabled the assistant in certain scenarios, particularly ones involving payments.

According to Kiranjeet Kaur of IDC, gaining broad access to competitors’ platforms remains one of the biggest hurdles for agent-based devices, since companies are reluctant to lose direct engagement with their own users. She noted that while the idea of seamless AI agents is appealing across the industry, the technology still has a long way to go before it performs reliably.

Other companies showcased their own versions at the conference. Honour presented its Robot Phone, featuring a small robotic camera arm capable of responding to gestures and taking selfies, with an AI agent built in partnership with Alibaba expected later this year. Shanghai-based StepFun unveiled the STEPX Neo, which it says has secured partnerships with platforms including Alipay and Didi to support tasks like travel bookings and everyday purchases.

Outside China, companies such as Google continue integrating AI features into smartphones, while US startup Brain Technologies launched its own agentic phone in Japan earlier this year through a partnership with SoftBank, though early demonstrations showed mixed reliability.

Industry analysts say no single company has yet taken a clear lead in this space, but many believe the shift could eventually change how people use apps altogether, reshaping the wider digital economy in the years ahead.