Huawei‘s response to the U.S. trade ban isn’t just focused on hardware efforts. The company is also making a major leap in software development with HarmonyOS Next, a new operating system that completely ditches from Google’s Android app support.

Now, a fresh report by Nikkei Asia suggests that Huawei will finally depart completely from Google’s Android operating system this year. The new HarmonyOS Next will ship first with Huawei Mate 70 series smartphones. 

The new OS reportedly offers improved memory efficiency and on-device AI capabilities. However, the true test lies in app availability. 

Huawei HarmonyOS NEXT user interface

While HarmonyOS Next currently has over 4,000 apps, including popular names like Alipay and McDonald’s, Huawei has set its sights on a much larger library, aiming for 5000 within the year, and top 500,000 eventually. 

The success of last year’s Mate 60 series has catalyzed Chinese corporations and businesses to join Huawei in developing apps for HarmonyOS Next, as noted in the report.

The company then launched the Nova 12 series and recently debuted the Huawei Pura 70 series, all of which have been well-received by consumers. 

TechInsights, a Canadian research firm, predicts that Huawei will sell 10 million Pura 70 handsets this year. The upcoming Mate 70 series is expected to drive the sales numbers further taking Huawei back to the top of China’s smartphone market after a long absence. 

WeChat, a dominant messaging app in China with over a billion users, holds significant sway over HarmonyOS Next’s fate. Huawei’s ability to secure support from such major players will be crucial for the platform’s survival within China.

If successful, HarmonyOS Next will certainly be a major competitor to Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android, creating a three-way battle for smartphone dominance. However, the road ahead is not without challenges, and only time will tell if Huawei can navigate them effectively.

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