Huawei and Xiaomi unveiled new foldable smartphones Monday ahead of Apple's anticipated Wednesday product event, while Huawei simultaneously faces a federal criminal racketeering trial in New York over charges of technology theft and fraud.
Huawei and Xiaomi rolled out new foldable smartphones Monday in an effort to get ahead of Apple's anticipated foldable iPhone reveal Wednesday, even as Huawei simultaneously faces a criminal racketeering trial in New York over allegations of technology theft and fraud.
Xiaomi, the world's third-largest smartphone maker, introduced the Xiaomi 18 Fold, a passport-sized device comparable in form factor to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8, which launched earlier this year. Huawei unveiled the Mate XT2, the third generation of its trifold smartphone line — a category the Chinese company pioneered.
The timing of both announcements is deliberate. Apple is holding a product event Wednesday, where it is widely rumored to unveil the first foldable iPhone, a significant new product under CEO John Ternus.
"This is not an innocent decision by these vendors," Francisco Jeronimo, a vice president at IDC covering mobile devices, told CNBC. "They knew Apple was coming up with a foldable, so they're trying to get ahead and, more importantly, trying to make sure that when the Apple products hit the stores, their product is there so consumers can compare."
Apple could ship 6 million foldable iPhones in 2026, capturing a 25% share of the global foldable smartphone market, according to Counterpoint Research. That share could climb to 40% by 2027, the firm added.
"There is significant pent-up demand for a foldable iPhone within the Apple community," Neil Shah, a partner at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC. "Many have refrained from switching to Samsung. Some have switched, but they might come back if there is an amazing foldable iPhone."
Samsung, which introduced the first mass-market foldable device in 2019 and released its latest foldable in July, remains Apple's primary global rival in the segment. In China specifically, Huawei holds more than two-thirds of the foldable market. Shah said "aspiring Chinese consumers" are nonetheless expected to pursue the foldable iPhone, predicting "lots of upgrades from the existing install base in China happening toward the foldable iPhone."
Both Chinese companies also touted proprietary chip technology inside their new devices. Xiaomi said the 18 Fold is powered by the XRing O3, its latest in-house smartphone processor built on an advanced manufacturing process. Huawei said the Mate XT2 is the first device to feature a semiconductor technique it calls LogicFolding, which is designed to improve how electrical signals move across a chip.
Huawei's product push comes as the company confronts serious legal jeopardy in the United States. Jury selection began Tuesday afternoon in a federal criminal racketeering trial in New York, where Huawei faces charges that include stealing technology, plotting to misappropriate U.S. trade secrets, and committing wire and bank fraud, among other alleged offenses. Opening statements were not expected until Wednesday.
The racketeering trial adds another layer of complexity to Huawei's position in the global technology market, where the company has operated under sustained U.S. export restrictions and sanctions for years.
With Apple's event set for Wednesday and foldable devices now available from Huawei, Xiaomi, and Samsung, the competitive dynamics of the premium smartphone segment are set to shift significantly — and how aggressively consumers in both Western and Chinese markets respond to a foldable iPhone will likely define the category's trajectory through 2027.
Jay Goldberg is a staff writer at TechEchelon covering technology, markets, and policy. He files the breaking news and deal coverage that move the publication's core desks.
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