{"id":92308,"date":"2025-10-20T10:02:17","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T10:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/92308\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T10:02:17","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T10:02:17","slug":"chinas-honor-teases-robot-phone-a-new-ai-handset-with-gimbal-attached-camera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/92308\/","title":{"rendered":"China’s Honor teases ‘Robot Phone’, a new AI handset with gimbal-attached camera"},"content":{"rendered":"

Honor<\/a>, the Chinese smartphone<\/a> maker spun off from Huawei Technologies<\/a>, on Wednesday teased a concept artificial intelligence<\/a>-enabled handset featuring a fold-out gimbal-attached camera, as the firm looks to differentiate itself from rival Android<\/a> device makers in the global market.<\/p>\n

The “Robot Phone” was unveiled by Honor online in a promotional video that showed the gimbal-stabilised camera unfurl from the back camera module and appear to pivot while tracking its subject’s movement.<\/p>\n

Honor described the unique smartphone as a “revolutionary AI device that fuses multi-modal intelligence, advanced robotics<\/a> and next-generation imaging”.<\/p>\n

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge<\/a>, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.<\/p>\n

The Shenzhen<\/a>-based company, which did not reveal details of the phone, said more information would be released in Spain<\/a> during next year’s MWC Barcelona<\/a> trade show, which will run from March 2 to 5.<\/p>\n

What’s the future of intelligent devices? While the industry is busy comparing the iPhone, we believe it’s time to break the mold and refocus on what truly matters: creating real value for you. Introducing the HONOR ROBOT PHONE – a revolutionary AI device that fuses multi-modal… pic.twitter.com\/NdhudoBpW0<\/a><\/p>\n

– HONOR (@Honorglobal) October 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

The Robot Phone would mark “an important milestone” for Honor’s “Alpha” plan<\/a>, according to the company.<\/p>\n

Unveiled in March by new CEO James Li Jian<\/a>, the plan involved a five-year, US$10 billion investment strategy<\/a> that would transform Honor from a smartphone maker into “an ecosystem company” focused on AI devices.<\/p>\n

That initiative would begin with the launch of an AI smartphone designed to change the way users interact with their handsets and eventually expand into an ecosystem of other devices, including personal computers, tablets and wearable devices, Li said at the time.<\/p>\n

Most of the US$10 billion investment would go to collaborations with global partners to “open technology boundaries” and “co-create a new paradigm for AI devices in the agentic AI era<\/a>“, according to a company representative.<\/p>\n

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Honor ‘s new “Robot Phone” is expected to be launched at the next MWC Barcelona trade show. Photo: Handout alt=Honor ‘s new “Robot Phone” is expected to be launched at the next MWC Barcelona trade show. Photo: Handout><\/p>\n

Honor unveiled the concept Robot Phone in Beijing<\/a> at Wednesday’s launch of its new Magic8-series AI smartphone, featuring the advanced AI agent dubbed “Yoyo”.<\/p>\n

Activated via a physical AI button on the Magic8 handset, Yoyo can autonomously perform more than 3,000 tasks – made possible through its connection with more than 4,000 third-party apps<\/a> including Alibaba Group Holding<\/a>‘s navigation service Amap<\/a>, Meituan<\/a> restaurant-ranking app Dianping and video platform Bilibili<\/a>, according to Honor. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.<\/p>\n

The same Honor teaser video also touted the Robot Phone’s “emotional companion” feature, which “senses, adapts, and evolves autonomously like a robot”. The promotional video, which appeared to be largely AI-generated, showed the smartphone’s gimbal-attached camera playing peekaboo to entertain a baby.<\/p>\n

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The gimbal-attached camera of Honor’s “Robot Phone” is seen in a folded state in the handset’s back camera module. Photo: Handout alt=The gimbal-attached camera of Honor’s “Robot Phone” is seen in a folded state in the handset’s back camera module. Photo: Handout><\/p>\n

In May, Honor announced its foray into robotics<\/a>. The company said it would develop its own robots and that it had helped Unitree Robotics<\/a> break the record for running speed by a humanoid robot.<\/p>\n

In the quarter ended September, Honor and Oppo<\/a> tied for the fifth spot in mainland China smartphone shipments, with market shares of 14.4 per cent and 14.5 per cent, respectively, according to a report by research firm IDC.<\/p>\n

Honor was established as a budget handset brand under Huawei in 2013. It was sold by Huawei to a consortium of agents and dealers in November 2020<\/a> amid tighter US tech restrictions<\/a> on the telecommunications equipment maker, which Washington added to a trade blacklist in May 2019<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP)<\/a>, the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app<\/a> or visit the SCMP’s Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a> pages. Copyright \u00a9 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n

Copyright (c) 2025. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n