The recent "HarmonyOS Starlight Gala," a major tech-cultural event broadcast in China, served as more than just a celebration. It was a public declaration of maturity for Huawei's HarmonyOS ecosystem. Once fighting for survival, HarmonyOS is now positioned as a foundational digital infrastructure, with its latest iteration—HarmonyOS 6—powering flagship devices like the Mate 80 series. This analysis delves into the technical and strategic significance of this launch, examining how HarmonyOS has moved beyond mere viability to challenge the global mobile operating system duopoly.
HarmonyOS 6: Cultivating a Unique "Personality" Beyond Basic Functionality
The journey for HarmonyOS has evolved from proving it could simply run applications to defining a distinctive user experience. Industry observers note that past operating systems like Symbian failed not because they were unusable, but because they lacked a defining character and a robust ecosystem. HarmonyOS 6 aims to avoid this pitfall by building what Huawei and its partners call a "moat" of exclusive features. This is not about replicating Android or iOS but about leveraging HarmonyOS's distributed architecture to create new interaction paradigms. The goal is to transition from an operating system that is merely "usable" to one that is "enjoyable" and offers "dedicated" functionalities unique to its ecosystem.
Technical Deep Dive: "Intelligent Grip" and "One-Touch" as New Interaction Standards
Two features exemplify the system-level integration that defines HarmonyOS 6's approach. The "Intelligent Grip" function on the Mate 80 series dynamically adjusts UI elements, like call answer buttons, based on how the phone is being held. This seemingly simple convenience requires deep collaboration across the device's sensor layer, the operating system's intent recognition, and application frameworks that cede absolute UI control for a context-aware layout. Similarly, the "One-Touch" (or "碰一碰") interaction allows services to flow seamlessly between devices. Users can start a game by touching two phones together or insert a photo from a phone into a document on a PC with a tap. This transforms core app functions into independent, movable service modules, making "One-Touch" a universal trigger for cross-device tasks and creating a new type of direct user入口.
The AI Evolution: System-Level Intelligence as a Core Service
In the race to integrate generative AI, HarmonyOS is taking a distinctly ecosystem-centric approach. The system-level AI assistant, Xiaoyi, is evolving from a standalone voice tool into an intelligent hub capable of orchestrating specialized skills from partner services. For instance, it can collaborate with Ctrip's AI to build travel itineraries or work with Ant Medical and iFlyTek's Xiaoyi to analyze health reports. This model positions AI not as a separate feature but as a core, schedulable service within the HarmonyOS framework. The philosophy is that AI becomes more powerful by accessing a broad ecosystem, while the ecosystem itself becomes smarter through pervasive AI integration.
The "Second Rendezvous": Building a Collective "Digital Ark"
Analysts frame HarmonyOS's current phase as China's tech industry's "second rendezvous." The first, a decade ago, was marked by the explosive growth of mobile internet apps like WeChat and Didi. The current phase, driven by geopolitical shifts and the trend toward万物智联 (the intelligent interconnection of all things), is about reconstructing the industry on a self-controlled foundational platform like HarmonyOS. Major Chinese tech giants, including Tencent, Alibaba, ByteDance, and Meituan, have committed deeply to the ecosystem. Their involvement is a critical signal that accelerates wider developer adoption. The collective aim, as described by some in the community, is to build a "Digital Ark"—a resilient, shared platform for China's digital future.
Reported Developer & Partner Commitments:
- Tencent: Over 60 apps on HarmonyOS, with WeChat receiving monthly updates.
- Kingsoft: Rewrote 40 million lines of code for HarmonyOS adaptation.
- Meituan: Developed its first HarmonyOS version in 6 weeks.
- Alipay: Completed 10 version iterations in 4 months.
Market Impact and the Path to "One-Third of the Market"
The commercial momentum is tangible. Despite a late-November launch, the Huawei Mate 80 series saw sales approximately 15% higher in its first 15 days compared to its predecessor. This surge helped Huawei reclaim the top spot in China's smartphone market share for two consecutive weeks in late 2025. According to Counterpoint Research data cited in the reports, HarmonyOS captured around 18% of the Chinese smartphone OS market in Q3 2025, surpassing iOS. Huawei's internal goal has been to cross a "survival line" of 16% share. Having achieved that, the focus shifts to the long-term ambition stated by Huawei's Richard Yu: to hold "one-third of the market," creating a stable tripartite格局 with Android and iOS.
Key HarmonyOS & Market Metrics (as of late 2025):
- HarmonyOS Ecosystem Devices: >1 billion
- HarmonyOS Apps &元 Services: >350,000
- HarmonyOS 5 & 6 Device Shipments: >32 million
- Registered HarmonyOS Developers: >10 million
- OpenHarmony (Open Source Project):
- Code Lines: >130 million
- Contributors: ~9,000
- Industry Distributions: 69+
- Market Share (China, Q3 2025): ~18% (surpassing iOS at ~14%)
Beyond Smartphones: OpenHarmony as an Industrial Digital Backbone
The significance of HarmonyOS extends far beyond consumer phones. Its open-source core, OpenHarmony, is rapidly becoming a standardized digital底座 (base) for Chinese industry. Over 69 industry-specific distributions have been developed, such as "MineHarmony" for mining, "PowerHarmony" for the state grid, and "PoliceHarmony" for public safety. These versions are deployed across energy, transportation, finance, and government sectors, indicating that HarmonyOS's role as a unifying, secure, and controllable operating system is being cemented at a national infrastructure level.
Conclusion: A Matured Ecosystem Faces the Future
The HarmonyOS Starlight Gala was a symbolic "coming-of-age" ceremony, showcasing an ecosystem that has survived its most precarious phase. With HarmonyOS 6 and devices like the Mate 80 series, Huawei is no longer just arguing for its platform's existence but demonstrating its unique value through deep technical integration and a thriving, collaborative partner network. The challenge now is to sustain this momentum, continue enriching the user experience, and solidify its position as a true third pillar in the global operating system landscape. The promise of a 2026 edition of the Gala suggests this journey of collective innovation is just beginning.