At a Huawei i Huawei Huawei is a Chinese technology company focused on mobile phones and telecommunications, and is seen as a poster child for China’s global tech ambitions. READ MORE store in a bustling shopping mall in northern Hong Kong last week, shoppers flocked to the Mate XT, the world’s first tri-fold smartphone, which can turn into a full-sized tablet. Earlier that day, YouTube sensation IShowSpeed bought three of the high-end phones — which start at about $2,800 — during a livestream in neighboring Shenzhen.
“It’s so big!” the prominent U.S. influencer with more than 38 million subscribers on YouTube said at a packed Huawei store, surrounded by onlookers.
“People who buy Chinese-made phones are looking for advanced features,” Steve Fok, a phone seller at an electronics mall in central Hong Kong, told Rest of World . Even iPhone owners were purchasing a second Chinese device for superior battery life and tech, he said.
Apple lost its spot as the top smartphone seller in China — the world’s biggest smartphone market — last year to local rivals Vivo and Huawei . Apple’s annual shipments in the country fell 17%, its biggest annual smartphone sales decline in China since 2016. Globally, too, while Apple held on to its top spot, its shipments dropped in 2024 compared to the previous year. Its market share also declined, while that of Chinese brands including Xiaomi i Xiaomi Xiaomi is a Chinese consumer electronics company that leads the country in smartphone manufacturing and sales. READ MORE , Oppo, Vivo, Honor, and Huawei rose internationally.
The integration of AI in smartphones is having a major impact.”
“Owning an iPhone today is not as much a status symbol as it was five to 10 years ago,” Francisco Jeronimo, vice president for data and analytics at market intelligence firm IDC in London, told Rest of World . “Apple is lagging behind its Chinese competitors in innovative features … people are moving towards more distinctive devices, like Huawei’s foldable phones.”
Apple’s decline in China is also because of its struggles to roll out AI capabilities. While the iPhone 16 has some AI features , the company announced last month that it would delay AI upgrades to Siri until 2026. Apple Intelligence is not available in iPhone 16 models sold in mainland China, as the company requires regulatory approval before it can offer AI services.
Meanwhile, Chinese brands have embraced DeepSeek’s AI models , and a patriotic fervor in the country may push more buyers toward homegrown brands. Since last year, Huawei’s newest models feature Xiaoyi, an AI assistant that uses DeepSeek tech to bolster the company’s own AI model. Other brands like Oppo and Honor have also rolled out AI features.
“The integration of AI in smartphones is having a major impact,” Jeronimo said. “So in a store, when a buyer is told about all these features, and they see that these are not available on an iPhone, then they are likely to opt for a Chinese brand.”
Now, plans to impose a 54% tariff on Chinese imports into the U.S. could turn even American buyers away from iPhones. Most iPhones sold in the U.S. are made in China, so the cheapest iPhone 16 could cost as much as $1,142, according to some estimates. The iPhone 16 Pro Max could cost as much as $2,300.
As a Chinese person I support Huawei as a Chinese brand.”
A potentially sharp price hike on iPhones in the U.S. could also give South Korea’s Samsung Electronics — the world’s number two smartphone maker — an edge, as the country faces lower tariffs than China. While Beijing has had long-standing tensions with its East Asian neighbors, President Donald Trump’s tariffs triggered the first summit between China, Japan, and South Korea in over four years, and Beijing said it would coordinate its response to U.S. tariffs with them.
In Hong Kong, some buyers cited nationalism and anti-U.S sentiment as reasons to switch to Chinese brands.
Ming Leung swapped his aging iPhone X for Huawei’s Pura 70 Pro last October. “As a Chinese person, I support Huawei as a Chinese brand,” he told Rest of World.
At the Huawei store, 40-year-old King Mak showed his wife how the Huawei Mate XT folds up. “My boss owns one. But he doesn’t actually use it,” he told Rest of World . “He just brings it with him to business trips in mainland China to show people that he’s patriotic.”
