中国手机市场陷入增长困局，催促厂商寻求新的突破口。2025年中国智能手机出货量约2.85亿台，同比下滑0.6%，已连续第三年低于3亿台[1]。用户换机周期拉长至40.2个月[1]，而小米等厂商的国内出货量更是同比下滑21.7%[1]。与此同时，手机存储芯片成本在短期内暴涨近300%[1]，进一步挤压了厂商利润空间。在硬件增长乏力的大背景下，手机厂商集体押注AI作为重塑用户关系的突破口。
字节跳动与中兴联合推出的豆包手机成为这一战略的首个实验。该手机于2025年12月1日正式发售，定价3499元，首批3万台在10秒内售罄[1]。然而这一高光时刻昙花一现，仅在120个小时后，豆包手机的功能就遭遇限制[1]。这种快速转折反映出AI手机虽然展现了比传统App更高级的交互界面可能性，但面临微信、淘宝等超级App的掣肘[1]。手机厂商试图通过AI重新建立与用户的直接连接，争夺用户关系的掌控权，这场博弈涉及硬件厂商、操作系统、大模型和超级App之间的重新洗牌[1]。
监管层面的推进为这一方向提供了支持。2026年7月15日，国家网信办公告了第一批通过端侧大模型备案的7款产品[1]。与此同时，微信在2026年6月落地A2A协议，与荣耀、小米等主流厂商达成合作[1]，表明超级App也开始适配新的技术生态。值得注意的是，苹果凭借强势的服务生态实现逆势增长——2026年Q2在中国市场增长24.4%[1]，其2025财年服务收入突破1000亿美元，同比增幅超过13%[1]。相比之下，小米2025年互联网服务全年收入374亿元[1]，差距明显。行业人士预计，OpenAI已展示"无传统App界面"的AI手机概念原型，内部计划目标2027年量产[1]，这将进一步激化这场围绕用户入口权的竞争。
Chinese smartphone manufacturers are turning to artificial intelligence as a solution to revive flagging hardware sales and lengthening device replacement cycles. The sector faces mounting pressures: shipments reached approximately 2.85 billion units in 2025, declining 0.6 percent year-over-year and marking the third consecutive year below 3 billion units, while average replacement cycles have stretched to 40.2 months [1]. In the first half of 2026, quarterly shipments fell to approximately 66.01 million units, down 4.3 percent year-over-year and representing the fifth consecutive quarter of decline [1]. Component costs have added to the squeeze, with smartphone storage chip prices surging nearly 300 percent within a single year [1].
Companies like Xiaomi have struggled particularly hard, with domestic shipments declining 21.7 percent year-over-year in Q2 [1]. Against this backdrop, ByteDance and ZTE jointly launched their first-generation Doubao Phone on December 1, 2025, priced at 3,499 yuan with an initial batch of 30,000 units that sold out in 10 seconds [1]. However, the triumph proved short-lived: within 120 hours, the device encountered functional limitations as restrictions from superapps like WeChat and Taobao curtailed its AI-driven interface capabilities [1]. This collision illustrates the deeper struggle between handset makers, operating systems, large language models, and dominant platforms over control of user relationships and interaction layers. In June 2026, WeChat implemented an A2A protocol agreement with mainstream manufacturers including Honor and Xiaomi, suggesting ongoing negotiations over these boundaries [1].
The competitive landscape extends globally. Apple's fiscal 2025 services revenue exceeded 100 billion dollars with year-over-year growth surpassing 13 percent, while in China's Q2 2026 market the company expanded 24.4 percent against the overall downturn [1]. Apple's services division generated 109.1 billion dollars in revenue, with the App Store commanding annual global commissions estimated between 25 to 35 billion dollars [1]. By contrast, Xiaomi's internet services revenue for full-year 2025 reached 37.4 billion yuan [1]. On July 15, 2026, China's Cyberspace Administration announced the first batch of seven end-side large language model products to pass regulatory review [1]. Meanwhile, OpenAI has already demonstrated a conceptual prototype of an AI smartphone featuring no traditional app interface, with internal production targets set for 2027 [1].
