Apple's iPhone 17 series has seen strong sales momentum, lifting expectations for fourth-quarter smartphone demand in 2025. But market attention is shifting to whether Chinese brands like Huawei, Xiaomi, Vivo, and Oppo can collectively counter the iPhone 17's dominance in the mid-to-high-end smartphone segment by year-end.

Samsung Electronics has announced its 2026 senior executive promotions, marking a sharp departure from its five-year pattern of steadily reducing the number of high-level advancements. The company increased its total senior promotions to 161, up from 137 in the previous year, drawing widespread industry attention and signaling a strategic shift toward bolstering leadership in future growth sectors, according to ET News and Chosun Biz.

Huawei introduced its latest flagship lineup on the 25th, launching the Mate 80 series together with the Mate X7 foldable.

Taiwan's smartphone shipments surged to nearly 560,000 units in October 2025, driven primarily by strong sales of Apple's iPhone 17 series, according to local channel operators. The figure represents a 17% increase from the previous month, marking a recent high for the market.

Apple has confirmed a restructuring of its global sales organization after eliminating dozens of roles, marking a rare round of layoffs for the company. The changes come as Apple faces heightened scrutiny over its leadership future, with reports stating that CEO Tim Cook may step down next year.

During Genius Electric Optical's (GSEO's) online investor conference on November 19, 2025, chairman Jones Chen reported that demand in the smart glasses market is strong. He stated that development of variable-aperture smartphone lenses is progressing smoothly, and the company is aiming for customer certification in 2026. Driven by smartphone lenses, AR, and VR, Chen hopes 2026 revenue and profit will outperform 2025.

Nvidia's strategic move toward low-power memory for its AI server lineup has set off a procurement scramble across the global tech supply chain. After the company released its fiscal 2026 third-quarter results, a report from Counterpoint Research indicated that Nvidia is adopting LPDDR chips more aggressively, replacing standard DDR modules in select AI server products. LPDDR has traditionally been used in mobile devices, making the shift especially significant.

Apple reportedly has increased its orders for A19 and A19 Pro series chips by 4 million to 5 million units over two months, fueled by robust demand for the iPhone 17 series in October and November 2025. This surge has led TSMC to modify its production capacity to accommodate Apple's growing device output.

Bengaluru-based electronics brand Wobble has debuted its first smartphone, the Wobble One, marking its entry into India's competitive mid-range smartphone market. The "Made in India" device focuses on performance, battery life, and camera capabilities while complementing Wobble's existing Smart TV and consumer electronics lineup, according to Business Today, Gadget 360, and the Indian Express.

Oppo is ramping up efforts to enhance the global competitiveness of its mobile devices by concentrating not only on hardware research and development but also on optimizing its operating system. The company aims to improve user experience through smoother software control and seamless connectivity, seeking to strengthen the software quality that underpins its smartphones. By prioritizing high-quality software, Oppo hopes to further distinguish itself from rivals in the crowded smartphone market.

Vivo's smartphone sub-brand iQOO is set to debut in Taiwan on November 28, introducing its iQOO 15 flagship model. Industry analysts project limited overall market growth due to Taiwan's saturated smartphone market and longer device replacement cycles, but foresee notable competition shifts affecting established players such as Redmi, Poco, Realme, and Asus' ROG gaming phones.

Global memory-chip price increases continue to intensify, putting fresh pressure on the smartphone supply chain. With DRAM and NAND prices rising across the board, several brands have halted new procurement rounds as suppliers request increases approaching 50%.

Samsung Electronics Co. has reportedly reached a 60% yield rate in producing its next-generation mobile application processor (AP), the Exynos 2600, using its 2nm GAA process technology. The company aims to price the chip US$20 to US$30 lower than Qualcomm's Snapdragon equivalent.

To carve out new growth in the highly mature smartphone industry, Oppo, on November 14, launched its Apex Guard technology suite designed to safeguard user experience with quality in hardware and software. The company positions this initiative as a key foundation for strengthening brand power and product sales.

Oppo has officially opened its new headquarters campus in Binhaiwan Bay Area, Dongguan, China, following an investment exceeding CNY10 billion (approx. US$1.41 billion). The 930,000-square-meter facility began operations in October 2024 and currently accommodates several thousand employees, with expectations to expand the workforce to over 10,000 by 2026.

Apple is reportedly preparing for a leadership transition, with CEO Tim Cook potentially stepping down as early as January 2026, according to reports from Reuters and TechCrunch, both citing the Financial Times. A formal announcement of the succession plan is expected following the company's financial results at the end of January 2026.

Samsung Electronics has reportedly set its sales targets for the next-generation foldables—Galaxy Z Fold8 and Flip8—aiming for roughly a 10% increase over the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Flip7 lineup. With Apple expected to introduce its first foldable iPhone in 2026, Samsung is accelerating efforts to defend its leadership in the segment.

Former DeepSeek researcher Fuli Luo has officially confirmed her move to Xiaomi, marking a significant development for the Chinese tech giant's AI ambitions. Luo's recruitment is viewed as a strategic asset for Xiaomi, which has consistently prioritized lightweight AI models and edge computing over competing directly in large-parameter model scales.

India's smartphone market hit a five-year peak in the festive third quarter of 2025, growing 4.3% year-over-year to 48 million units, according to IDC data released recently. The rise was fueled by strong demand for premium models, boosted by new and earlier releases, while weaker entry-level Android sales and higher average prices reflected a shift toward higher-value devices.

Samsung Electronics is reportedly confirmed to officially launch its new flagship smartphone series, the Galaxy S26, in February 2026. Although earlier reports suggested a possible delay to March 2026 due to product line adjustments, the company is said to have coordinated across its divisions to shorten the timeline and proceed with the launch as scheduled.

GlobalFoundries forecasts stronger results for the fourth quarter of 2025, saying robust demand from automotive and data center customers is expected to offset continued weakness in the smartphone market.

Pegatron Corp. is accelerating its shift away from China, increasing the share of manufacturing capacity located outside the country to 30-40% in 2025 from 20-30% in 2024, the company's management revealed during its earnings call on November 12. This move reflects Pegatron's broader strategy to diversify its manufacturing footprint and reduce reliance on its core contract with Apple Inc., which still accounts for approximately 60% of its revenue.

Snapchat has announced a one-year, US$400 million agreement with AI search startup Perplexity to integrate its AI search engine into Snapchat's chat functionality. The partnership aims to boost advertising and subscription growth, enhance user experience, and compete with social platforms like TikTok and Meta.

Global investors, including Nvidia and Qualcomm Ventures, are backing India's deep-tech sector. Meanwhile, LGES faces a battery tech leak linked to Ola Electric,