The biggest changes in smartphones in the second half of 2025

Screen introducing the Gen AI feature on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Photo: Digital Trends .

According to market research firm Counterpoint Research , one in three smartphones sold this year will be equipped with generative AI (Gen AI), bringing total estimated sales to 400 million units.

By comparison, in 2024, only one in five smartphones sold will be equipped with Gen AI. This shows that the trend of integrating Gen AI into smartphones is happening faster than expected, mainly thanks to advanced processing chips and the emergence of small, efficient large language models (LLMs).

“These features are becoming standard on high-end smartphones, and will rapidly expand to the mid-range segment from 2025,” said a report from Counterpoint Research .

Smartphone makers are likely to ramp up their promotion of Gen AI in 2025. However, adoption is limited as AI is not yet useful in everyday life, so many companies are working on more practical features to encourage users to upgrade.

Apple and Samsung are expected to dominate the early Gen AI smartphone market, thanks to their existing recognition in the high-end segment and developed markets.

“Both brands are investing heavily in Gen AI with Apple Intelligence and Galaxy AI. They will continue to expand AI capabilities through regular software updates and phased deployments for new use cases in 2025,” said analysts from Counterpoint Research .

Gen AI could expand to mid-range smartphones from late 2026 or early 2027, mainly from Chinese brands like Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, and Honor. As Gen AI smartphones become more accessible, the position of Apple and Samsung could be affected.

Market share of AI-integrated smartphone brands in 2024, forecast 2025-2028. Photo: Counterpoint Research .

Regionally, North America, Western Europe, and China are likely to lead the Gen AI smartphone market, with major players like Apple, Samsung, and Google pushing their presence through premium features like content processing, personalized assistants, and subscription-based add-on services.

“Despite high market penetration, users remain skeptical due to their caution in paying for AI features,” analysts stressed.

Gen AI smartphones will also gain a stronger presence in China thanks to local brands. Competitive pressure may push rivals to popularize Gen AI on mid-range devices sooner. However, brands' LLMs will still be available only to domestic users.

In 2025, Agent AI is becoming a trend. This technology can soon be popular on smartphones, aiming to surpass Gen AI in terms of context recognition and AI task automation.