Directly embedded into mobile operating systems! DouBao Phone Assistant has been integrated into ZTE’s prototype device. Has the era of AI-powered smartphone operations arrived?

Comparing prices for food delivery, auto-replying on WeChat… DouBao is directly embedded into the mobile operating system—perhaps the era of AI managing smartphones has truly arrived.

On December 1st, ByteDance’s DouBao team released a technical preview version of DouBao Phone Assistant. Importantly, this is not a traditional application (App), but an AI assistant software developed in collaboration with mobile manufacturers at the operating system level. Currently, this technical preview version has been integrated into an engineering prototype developed through cooperation between DouBao and $ZTE (00763.HK)$ .

According to All Day Tech, it was explained that DouBao Phone Assistant builds upon the DouBao App and collaborates with smartphone manufacturers at the operating system level as an AI assistant software. DouBao’s large model capabilities are comprehensive, and its performance in reasoning, visual understanding, image creation, video generation, speech, and other areas has reached an internationally leading level. Its graphical interface operation capability has achieved industry-leading results in multiple authoritative evaluations, enabling it to operate smartphones like humans and complete various complex tasks.

Regarding the implementation pathway for the phone assistant, DouBao explicitly stated that it has no plans to develop its own smartphone. Instead, it is currently in talks with multiple smartphone manufacturers to integrate DouBao Phone Assistant into various brand models under an ‘ecosystem partnership’ format. Relevant progress will be announced later. At this stage, developers and tech enthusiasts can experience the technical preview version of DouBao Phone Assistant on the engineering prototype nubia M153, jointly developed by DouBao and ZTE. This version is now available for limited sale to developers and tech enthusiasts, priced at 3,499 yuan.

This engineering prototype, the nubia M153, features a 6.78-inch LTPO display on the front, with a resolution of 1264*2800.

The processor is$Qualcomm (QCOM.US)$ Snapdragon 8 Elite, equipped with a 16+512GB storage configuration, features a built-in 6000mAh battery and supports 90W wired, 15W wireless, and 5W reverse charging.

Actual Test of DouBao Phone Assistant: Price Comparison for Food Delivery, Auto-Replies on WeChat

According to a report by LatePost, the main R&D team behind DouBao Phone Assistant is Ocean, ByteDance’s division responsible for AI hardware. Ocean belongs to ByteDance’s larger AI products department, Flow. Its core members come from various hardware product teams that ByteDance has acquired over the years, including Smartisan phones, VR headsets PICO, smart earphones Ola Dance, as well as mobile and hardware professionals who have joined ByteDance in recent years.

In testing DouBao Phone Assistant, the report described: “Compare which KFC Spicy Chicken Burger is cheaper among JD.com, Meituan Waimai, or Taobao. Select the lowest-priced option and place the order to be delivered to Building A of Sanlitun SOHO. Add a note during checkout saying ‘Leave at the front desk,’ then take a screenshot of the order and send it to Xiao Ming via WeChat, letting him know the food has been ordered.”

Throughout the entire process, human intervention is only required during the payment stage; all other operations are automatically completed by AI in the background.Futubull AI: Your Portfolio Manager!Your stock-picking think tank!

Editor/KOKO