Trend Smartphone competition reorganises around AI agents and AI-based interfaces

Summary

KISDI expects smartphone competition to be reorganised around AI agents as Samsung's Galaxy AI Agent, Apple Intelligence and Google's Gemini models are rolled out in earnest. Agent functions go beyond simple voice assistance to summarising, recommending, generating content and controlling the device, recasting the user's overall behaviour in conversational form. As a result, the core user experience of the smartphone is shifting from app-based interfaces to AI-based interfaces. The institute expects generative AI to change the quality of replacement demand rather than to drive a sudden jump in unit volumes. It sees the shift raising average specifications and prices, especially among high-end handsets.