Igeekphone News: Chinese artificial intelligence company StepFun is reportedly preparing to enter the consumer hardware market with its first AI-powered smartphone, marking a significant expansion beyond large language models into intelligent devices.
According to recent reports from Chinese media, the Shanghai-based AI startup will soon unveil a new AI terminal ecosystem that includes an AI hardware brand, a proprietary AI agent operating system, and its first AI agent smartphone. If launched as expected, the device could become one of the world’s first smartphones built around a native AI agent experience, ahead of several competing AI hardware initiatives.
A Smartphone Designed for the AI Agent Era
StepFun has officially announced that it is preparing a new generation of intelligent terminal devices aimed at what it describes as the “Agent Era.”
Rather than treating AI as a standalone chatbot or assistant, the company’s vision centers on AI agents capable of understanding user intent, interacting with applications autonomously, and completing complex tasks across multiple services with minimal user input.
The upcoming smartphone is expected to serve as the flagship platform for showcasing these capabilities, integrating StepFun’s large language models directly into the device experience.
Manufacturing Partnership with Huaqin Technology
Industry sources indicate that the smartphone will be manufactured in partnership with Huaqin Technology, one of the world’s largest original design manufacturers (ODM) for smart devices.
According to the reports, the collaboration extends beyond a conventional manufacturing agreement. Instead, StepFun and Huaqin are said to be working closely on hardware and software integration to optimize AI performance at the device level.
Huaqin Technology is a major supplier of smartphones, laptops, tablets, and wearable devices for numerous global brands. Industry data suggests the company contributes to more than 10% of worldwide shipments across several consumer electronics categories.
Long-Term Strategic Collaboration
The relationship between StepFun and Huaqin has developed over several years.
Huaqin participated in StepFun’s Series B+ financing round before increasing its investment during the company’s subsequent Series C funding.
The two companies are also reportedly collaborating with partners across China’s technology ecosystem, including firms specializing in telecommunications, imaging technologies, and smart device manufacturing, to build a comprehensive AI hardware platform.
Backed by Experienced AI Talent
Founded in Shanghai in 2023, StepFun has quickly emerged as one of China’s leading AI startups and is widely regarded as one of the country’s fastest-growing foundation model developers.
The company was founded by Jiang Daxin, a former Microsoft Global Vice President, while Im Qi serves as chairman. Its research team includes AI specialists with experience at companies such as Microsoft and ByteDance.
Since its establishment, StepFun has reportedly raised more than CNY 20 billion (approximately US$2.8 billion) through multiple financing rounds, attracting investment from several major technology and consumer electronics companies.
According to local reports, the company has also completed its corporate restructuring and is preparing for a future initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong.
Native AI Agent at the Core
Unlike many AI companies that focus primarily on cloud-based services, StepFun is pursuing a strategy that combines foundation models, edge AI, and consumer hardware.
Its self-developed Step family of trillion-parameter multimodal models forms the foundation of this ecosystem.
One of the company’s key technologies is Step-GUI, a graphical user interface (GUI) agent capable of understanding smartphone interfaces and performing tasks directly within applications.
According to the company, the system can:
- Recognize on-screen user interfaces locally
- Understand app layouts without custom integrations
- Complete multi-step workflows automatically
- Operate across more than 200 mobile applications
- Reduce the need for manual user interaction
By running lightweight AI models on-device alongside cloud-based models when needed, StepFun aims to deliver faster response times while improving privacy and reducing latency.
Previous Collaborations Already Underway
Although the upcoming smartphone would be StepFun’s first branded consumer device, the company has already introduced its AI technologies through partnerships with established hardware manufacturers.
Its AI agent capabilities have reportedly been integrated into products including OPPO smartphones and Geely intelligent vehicle infotainment systems, demonstrating how the platform can automate tasks across different types of connected devices.
These earlier collaborations provide a foundation for StepFun’s transition from AI software provider to full-stack AI hardware company.
Looking Ahead
The launch of StepFun’s first AI smartphone would represent another important milestone in the rapidly evolving AI device market. Rather than simply embedding a chatbot into an existing smartphone, the company appears to be designing a device where AI agents become a central part of the user experience, capable of understanding context, interacting with apps, and completing complex tasks autonomously.
As global technology companies increasingly compete to define the next generation of AI-powered consumer devices, StepFun’s reported plans highlight the growing trend toward native AI smartphones, where intelligent agents are deeply integrated into both hardware and software from the ground up. More details are expected when the company officially unveils its new AI ecosystem in the coming weeks.