Chinese phone makers unveiled agentic smartphones at the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai. Built to run AI agents directly on-device, these phones are designed to handle multi-step tasks across apps with voice or text commands, marking a shift from digital assistants to autonomous “pocket-size AI.”
Nubia introduced the NaviX Ultra, powered by ByteDance’s Doubao chatbot. The phone showed the ability to compare e-commerce prices, plan travel, and order food independently.
Meanwhile, HONOR presented its Robot Phone, featuring a robotic arm camera and gesture recognition, with embedded AI models co-developed with Alibaba. StepFun launched the STEPX Neo, integrating services like Alipay and Didi into one platform.
The push for agentic smartphones promises faster performance and stronger privacy. On-device AI eliminates latency for tasks such as live translation and document summarization, while keeping data local instead of sending it to the cloud.
However, adoption faces challenges. Major platforms including Alibaba, Tencent, and JD.com have restricted access to these assistants shortly after launch. App developers are also hesitant to allow AI agents to act as middlemen.
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Global players like Google and US startup Brain Technologies are also exploring agentic phones, though performance remains inconsistent. Analysts suggest apps could become obsolete within five to ten years if AI agents gain traction.
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