Huawei vs Apple. When Apple revealed the iPhone 16 series, its first line of AI-powered smartphones, it was supposed to signal the beginning of a new age for the tech giant. However, many were left disappointed because the device is still in beta testing and would likely take months or even years to roll out globally.
The Chinese tech giant Huawei, which boasts considerably more powerful AI features driven by its in-house Kylin CPUs, introduced its new Mate XT smartphone just hours after the former's event, which made matters worse for the Cupertino, California-based smartphone company.
Huawei's action demonstrates its inventiveness in the face of US sanctions, but it also raises questions about Apple's market dominance in Mainland China, one of its most important markets. Let's investigate why.
Huawei vs Apple
Many industry analysts are unsure if Apple's AI initiative is ready for prime time due to the company's tardiness in releasing AI features.
According to Needham analyst Laura Martin, who was cited by Reuters, "the core Apple message for iPhone 16 was: Next year will be better," with a number of references to "later this year" and "early next year."
The collection of instruments referred to as Apple Intelligence has been in development for a while. Since June, when it held its developer conference, the corporation has been promoting the technology.
But many important features won't be available until the next year, and the software won't be part of the first iterations of the new iPhones.
Delayed AI features in iPhone 16
Many local Apple users in China were first excited about Monday's iPhone 16 series debut, but their euphoria rapidly changed to regret when they saw that the AI features will not be made available in their language until the following year.
Simultaneously, Huawei's AI assistant will be easily accessible after the Mate XT goes on sale later this month. It features text summary, translation, and editing capabilities in addition to AI-enhanced image editing features like cropping out undesired portions of photos.
The value proposition of the new iPhones has been questioned in China as a because of this delay, particularly in light of the intense rivalry from regional rivals like Huawei.
One commenter on Weibo, the well-known microblogging platform in China, said, "The absence of AI in China is akin to cutting one of Apple's arms."
"Shouldn't you charge us half the price with the biggest selling point unavailable?" questioned a different user sharply.
According to South China Morning Post, these opinions are indicative of a rising dissatisfaction among Chinese customers who believe they are not receiving the full benefit of Apple's most recent improvements.
On the other hand, according to the business website, Huawei's new Mate XT, which users can fold in three different ways like an accordion screen door, has already gotten over four million pre-orders with no deposit needed.
The global market for foldable phones was estimated by research firm IDC to be approximately 4 million units in the second quarter.
We present to you today a product that anybody could envision but could not produce. Richard Yu, executive director of Huawei, stated at the launch, "Our team has been working hard for five years and has never given up."
However, Apple has not yet disclosed a Chinese AI partner that will support Apple Intelligence. This is due to the fact that the situation is made more complex by the unclear regulatory environment in mainland China.
188 big language models have been recognized for public usage by the nation's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; none of these models are the product of foreign enterprises.
This begs the question of whether mainland China will have access to Apple's AI functions even after they are released in other Chinese-speaking areas. According to Apple's website, Chinese regulators' decisions will determine when to release its AI function in China.
However, Apple needs to catch up quickly. Apple's market share in the second-largest economy in the world has decreased from third to sixth as a result of declining sales.
This is despite the fact that Apple has always had strong demand in China, where the introduction of a new iPhone has often sparked a frenzy.
When Shenzhen-based Huawei made a comeback to the high-end smartphone market last year with the introduction of a product running on a chip made in the country, the industry took an unexpected turn. This went against US sanctions that had blocked access to the world's supply chain for chips.
What surprised observers and US officials was the Mate 60 Pro's launch. Furthermore, Huawei began stocking two-way foldable phones, and this year it overtook Samsung Electronics as the world's biggest supplier of these devices thanks to robust sales in China.
Due to Apple Intelligence's delay in China, rivals like Huawei will have a little window of opportunity to seize market share and position themselves as industry leaders in AI-powered devices on their native soil. This might make it harder for Apple to recover ground when its AI features do eventually make out to the nation.
In the end, Apple's AI aspirations in China are a risky move for the company. Even if the company's brand is still very appealing, there are substantial obstacles to overcome, like the slow release of AI features and fierce rivalry from local competitors like Huawei.
Apple's future performance in this crucial market may depend on its capacity to modify its AI strategy to the specific needs of the Chinese smartphone market as it continues to develop.
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