A new report says the second-generation Doubao AI phone may launch in the first half of the year, with a tip from Weibo blogger Smart Chip Insider claiming the device will use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 platform. At this stage, the timing and hardware are still being discussed as a leak rather than a confirmed product announcement, but the report points to a continued push around dedicated AI phones.
Earlier coverage cited remarks from ZTE during a March 30 earnings briefing, where the company said it was deepening cooperation with major ecosystem partners including ByteDance. ZTE said that work was underway to advance the development and rollout of a new-generation Doubao AI phone, tying the effort to its broader “AI for All” strategy.
That background matters because ByteDance and ZTE already previewed the concept in late 2025. On December 1 of that year, the two companies announced a small release of an engineering prototype based on Doubao mobile assistant technology preview software. The prototype, the nubia M153, came with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, a 6.78-inch LTPO display, and a 6,000mAh battery.
According to the official description shared previously, the Doubao mobile assistant is built through operating-system-level cooperation between Doubao and phone makers. With support from the Doubao large model and manufacturer-granted system access, the goal is to give users a more convenient and capable on-device AI experience, rather than treating the assistant as just another standalone app.
If this new leak proves accurate, the next Doubao AI phone would mark another step in turning that early prototype effort into a commercial device. For now, the key points are the possible first-half launch window, the reported move to Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, and the continued partnership path involving ByteDance and ZTE.
