Huawei Launches Mate 90 Series Amidst Market Challenges
On October 4, 2026, the Huawei Mate 90 series smartphones were showcased in Hai’an City, Jiangsu Province, China, aligning with the nation’s “National Day” celebrations.
As Huawei confronts a deceleration in both the smartphone and automotive sectors, the technology behemoth has pivoted towards manufacturing devices powered by its proprietary chipsets.
The Mate 90 series marks the debut of Huawei’s bespoke “LogicFolding” processor, which was unveiled on October 1.
In advance of the launch, Huawei’s Executive Director, Richard Yu, articulated ambitions to reclaim international market share, a status sharply diminished by U.S. sanctions imposed in 2019.
At that juncture, Huawei had eclipsed global smartphone shipments, exceeding 240 million devices, with an audacious target of 300 million units for 2019.
Currently, however, Huawei’s annual smartphone sales outside of China have dwindled to a mere few million units, according to Yu.
He expounded on plans to extend the reach of the HarmonyOS to global markets within the next one to three years, expressing optimism regarding China’s burgeoning chip manufacturing capacity, which he hopes will eventually facilitate the export of devices embedded with self-developed chip technology.
Yu, who has consistently been Huawei’s face for smartphone and automotive unveilings, is navigating these tumultuous waters as the company anticipates a revival of its fortunes.
A Strategic Move Into Electric Vehicles
Simultaneously, Huawei has forayed into the electric vehicle sector, forging partnerships with various Chinese automakers. This venture has culminated in a business unit that generated revenues of at least $6.7 billion as of 2025, as outlined in the company’s annual report.
While transporting cutting-edge technology into the automotive arena, Huawei clarifies that it does not manufacture the vehicles but instead provides software platforms and driver-assistance technologies.
Nevertheless, the broader Chinese automotive market is poised to experience its most torrid year since 2021, with sales plummeting by over 20% in the first three quarters, as reported by the China Passenger Car Association.
Sales of new energy vehicles, encompassing battery electric and hybrid models, have also witnessed a steep 13% decline during this period.
In September, the frequency of deliveries for Huawei-enhanced vehicles faltered for the third consecutive month, plummeting 29% year-on-year, based on calculations derived from data by the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA), Huawei’s automotive tech framework.
This downturn stands in stark contrast to the notable performance of market leader BYD, which has consistently recorded double-digit sales increases, surpassing 400,000 units monthly. Leapmotor similarly capitalized on the trend, exceeding 100,000 deliveries per month since July.
HIMA manages to deliver approximately 37,500 vehicles in September, a figure that pales in comparison to the over 1.56 million units sold since the introduction of Huawei-equipped cars in late 2021. Notably, Tesla China has yet to release its September sales figures.
In December 2021, Yu showcased the inaugural model featuring Huawei technologies, the Aito M5. However, Seres Group, which manufactures the Aito EV line, has witnessed its Shanghai-listed shares plummet over 60% this year.
Recently, on October 1, Huawei announced a five-year collaborative agreement with Seres, which includes the creation of a dedicated Aito business team as the mainland Chinese markets prepare to reopen following closures since October 1.
Source link: Cnbc.com.
