Hubbry Logo
HarmonyOSHarmonyOSMain
Open search
HarmonyOS
Community hub
HarmonyOS
logo
7 pages, 0 posts
0 subscribers
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
HarmonyOS
HarmonyOS
HarmonyOS
View on Wikipedia
from Wikipedia

HarmonyOS
DeveloperHuawei
Written inC, C++, JavaScript, ArkTS, Cangjie,[1] Rust, Assembly language and others
OS family
Working stateCurrent
Source modelClosed, with open source components
Initial releaseAugust 9, 2019; 6 years ago (2019-08-09)
Latest release5.0.0.107 SP8 - Release / November 19, 2024; 11 months ago (2024-11-19)
Latest preview6.0 / October 22, 2025; 4 days ago (2025-10-22)
Marketing targetEmbedded systems, Internet of Things, Internet of vehicles, Edge computing, wireless routers, smartphones, tablet computers, smart TVs, smartwatches, fitness trackers, smart speakers, personal computers, Laptops, mixed reality headsets, virtual reality headsets, wireless earbuds, wireless headphones, wearable devices, augmented reality headsets, smart printers, interactive whiteboards, E-readers, cars, smart homes, enterprise, industry, aerospace
Available in77 languages
Update methodOver-the-air
Package manager.app
Supported platforms64-bit ARM, x86-64, RISC-V, LinxiISA [2]
Kernel typeHarmonyOS kernel (Microkernel)
UserlandSystem Service Layer (OpenHarmony-based HarmonyOS system, Linux ABI Runtime reused drivers container) [3][4]
Default
user interface		Harmony Design (Design System) (multi-touch, GUI)
LicenseCommercial software, Proprietary software except for open-source components
Preceded byLiteOS, EMUI, Android and Microsoft Windows
Official websitewww.harmonyos.com/en/
Support status
Supported
Articles in the series
HarmonyOS version history
HarmonyOS
Simplified Chinese鸿蒙
Traditional Chinese鴻蒙
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinHóngméng
Bopomofoㄏㄨㄥˊ ㄇㄥ
Tongyong PinyinHóng Méng
Yue: Cantonese
Yale RomanizationHùhng Mùhng
JyutpingHung4 Mung4

HarmonyOS (HMOS) (Chinese: 鸿蒙; pinyin: Hóngméng; trans. "Vast Mist") is a distributed operating system developed by Huawei for smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, smart watches, personal computers and other smart devices. It has a microkernel design with a single framework: the operating system selects suitable kernels from the abstraction layer in the case of devices that use diverse resources.[5][6][7] From 2019 to 2024, versions 1 to 4 of the operating system were based on code from the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) and the Linux kernel; many Android apps could be sideloaded on HarmonyOS.[8] The next iteration of HarmonyOS became known as HarmonyOS NEXT. HarmonyOS NEXT was announced on August 4, 2023, and officially launched on October 22, 2024.[9] It replaced the OpenHarmony multi-kernel system with its own HarmonyOS microkernel at its core and removed all Android code. Since version 5, HarmonyOS only supports apps in its native "App" format.[10][11]

HarmonyOS was officially launched by Huawei, and first used in Honor smart TVs, in August 2019.[12][13] It was later used in Huawei wireless routers, IoT in 2020, followed by smartphones, tablets and smartwatches from June 2021.[14]

In May 2025, the first notebook with the HarmonyOS operating system was launched by Huawei, featuring "HarmonyOS PC", i.e. HarmonyOS 5 for the personal computer form factor.[15]

Name

[edit]

In 2015, Huawei launched a research and development strategy for self-developed core technologies including operating systems and databases. At that time, its own operating system did not have a name, and there was only a group of engineers designing the architecture, writing code, and designing core technologies.[16]

In 2019, Huawei applied for a trademark called "华为鸿蒙" for the kernel of its own operating system. At that time, when the company was still struggling with what to name its operating system, the public mistakenly thought the trademark of the system kernel was the name of an operating system. Finally, the official named the operating system "Hongmeng" (Chinese: 鸿蒙; lit. 'Vast Mist'). The name "Hongmeng" represents "the vitality of all things at the beginning of their creation". The English name chosen was "HarmonyOS", symbolizing "the interconnection of all things and harmonious coexistence."[16]

History

[edit]
See also: United States sanctions against China

Early development

[edit]

Reports surrounding an in-house operating system being developed by Huawei date back as far as 2012 in R&D stages with HarmonyOS NEXT system stack going back as early as 2015.[17][18] These reports intensified during the Sino-American trade war, after the United States Department of Commerce added Huawei to its Entity List in May 2019 under an indictment that it knowingly exported goods, technology and services of U.S. origin to Iran in violation of sanctions. This prohibited U.S.-based companies from doing business with Huawei without first obtaining a license from the government.[19][20][21][22][23] Huawei executive Yu Chengdong [zh] described an in-house platform as a "plan B" in case it is prevented from using Android on future smartphone products due to the sanctions.[24][25][26]

Prior to its unveiling, it was originally speculated to be a mobile operating system that could replace Android on future Huawei devices. In June 2019, an Huawei executive told Reuters that the OS was under testing in China, and could be ready "in months", but by July 2019, some Huawei executives described the OS as being an embedded operating system designed for IoT hardware, discarding the previous statements for it to be a mobile operating system.[27]

Some media outlets reported that this OS, referred to as "Hongmeng", could be released in China in either August or September 2019, with a worldwide release in the second quarter of 2020.[28][29] On 24 May 2019, Huawei registered "Hongmeng" as a trademark in China.[30] The name "Hongmeng" came from Chinese mythology that symbolizes primordial chaos or the world before creation.[31] The same day, Huawei registered trademarks surrounding "Ark OS" and variants with the European Union Intellectual Property Office.[32] In July 2019, it was reported that Huawei had also registered trademarks surrounding the word "Harmony" for desktop and mobile operating system software, indicating either a different name or a component of the OS.[33]

Framework transitions

[edit]

Early versions of HarmonyOS, starting from version 1.0, employed a "kernel abstraction layer" (KAL) subsystem to support a multi-kernel architecture.[34] This allowed developers to choose different operating system kernels based on the resources available on each device. For low-powered devices such as wearables and Huawei's GT smartwatches, HarmonyOS utilized the LiteOS kernel instead of Linux. It also integrated the LiteOS SDK for TV applications and ensured compatibility with Android apps through the Ark Compiler and a dual-framework approach.[35] HarmonyOS 1.0's original L0-L2 source code branch was contributed to the OpenAtom Foundation to accelerate system development.[36]

HarmonyOS 2.0 introduced a modified version of OpenHarmony's L3-L5 source code, expanding its compatibility across smartphones and tablets. Underneath the kernel abstraction layer (KAL) subsystem, HarmonyOS used the Linux kernel and the AOSP codebase. This setup enabled Android APK files and App Bundles (AAB) to run natively, similar to older Huawei EMUI-based devices, without needing root access.[37][38]

Additionally, HarmonyOS supported native apps packaged for Huawei Mobile Services through the Ark Compiler, leveraging the OpenHarmony framework within its dual-framework structure at the System Service Layer. This configuration allowed the operating system to run apps developed with restricted HarmonyOS APIs.[39]

Until the release of HarmonyOS 5.0.0, known as HarmonyOS NEXT 5, using its microkernel within a single framework, replacing the operating system dual-framework approach for Huawei's HarmonyOS devices with the AOSP codebase.[11][40]

Release

[edit]
See also: HarmonyOS version history

On 9 August 2019, three months after the Entity List ban, Huawei publicly unveiled HarmonyOS, which Huawei said it had been working on since 2012, at its inaugural developers' conference in Dongguan. Huawei described HarmonyOS as a free, microkernel-based distributed operating system for various types of hardware. The company focused primarily on IoT devices, including smart TVs, wearable devices, and in-car entertainment systems, and did not explicitly position HarmonyOS as a mobile OS.[41][42][43]

HarmonyOS 2.0 launched at the Huawei Developer Conference on 10 September 2020. Huawei announced it intended to ship the operating system on its smartphones in 2021.[44] The first developer beta of HarmonyOS 2.0 was launched on 16 December 2020. Huawei also released the DevEco Studio IDE, which is based on IntelliJ IDEA, and a cloud emulator for developers in early access.[45][46]

Huawei officially released HarmonyOS 2.0 and launched new devices shipping with the OS in June 2021, and started rolling out system upgrades to Huawei's older phones for users gradually.[47][48][49]

On July 27, 2022, Huawei launched HarmonyOS 3 providing an improved experience across multiple devices such as smartphones, tablets, printers, cars and TVs. It also launched Petal Chuxing, a ride-hailing app running on the new version of the operating system.[50][51][52][53]

On 29 June 2023, Huawei launched the first developer beta of HarmonyOS 4.[54] On 4 August 2023, Huawei officially announced and released HarmonyOS 4 as a public beta.[55] On 9 August, it rolled the operating system out on 34 different existing Huawei smartphone and tablet devices—albeit as a public beta build.[56] Alongside HarmonyOS 4, Huawei also announced the launch of HarmonyOS NEXT, which is a "pure" HarmonyOS version, without Android libraries and therefore incompatible with Android apps post-software convergence.[57]

On 18 January 2024, Huawei announced commercialisation of HarmonyOS NEXT with Galaxy stable version rollout which will begin in Q4 2024 based on OpenHarmony 5.0 (API 12) version after OpenHarmony 4.1 (API 11) based Q2 Developer Beta after release of public developer access of HarmonyOS NEXT Developer Preview 1 that has been in the hands of closed cooperative developers partners since August 2023 debut. The new system of upcoming HarmonyOS 5 version that replaced HarmonyOS multi-kernel dual-frame system convergence for unified system stack of the unified app ecosystem for commercial Huawei consumer devices.[58][59]

On March 11, 2024, Huawei announced the early recruitment for the new test experience version of Huawei HarmonyOS 4 firmware update that includes performance improvements, purer and better user experiences. HarmonyOS version 4.0.0.200 (C00E200R2P7) of the firmware was gradually rolled out on March 12, 2024.[60][61]

On April 11, 2024, it has been reported that Huawei opened the registration and rolled out public beta of HarmonyOS 4.2 for 24 devices. On the same day, the company announced its incoming HarmonyOS 5.0 operating system version of Galaxy Edition version under HarmonyOS NEXT system that will first be released as open beta program for developers and users at its annual Huawei Developer Conference in June 2024 before Q4 commercial consumer release with upcoming Mate 70 flagship, among other ecosystem devices.[62][63]

On April 18, 2024, Huawei Pura 70 flagship series lineup received HarmonyOS 4.2.0.137 update, after release.[64]

On April 17, 2024, Huawei's chairman Eric Xu revealed plans to push native HarmonyOS NEXT system for next gen HarmonyOS in global markets as the company's focus at Huawei's Analyst Summit 2024 (HAS 2024) to Chinese and international press which was reported in various international outlets on April 22, 2024.[65][66]

On May 17, 2024, during the HarmonyOS Developer Day (HDD) event, Huawei announced HarmonyOS upgrade with the new HarmonyOS NEXT base will begin commercial use by September with over 800 million units of devices and 4,000 apps in use for a target of 5,000 apps at launch.[67][68]

On June 21, 2024, during the Huawei Developer Conference (HDC) keynote, Huawei announced HarmonyOS NEXT Developer Beta for registered developers and 3,000 pioneer users on limited models such as Huawei Mate 60 Series, Huawei Mate X5 Series and Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 tablet. The consumer beta version is expected to be released in August 2024 while the stable build to be made available in Q4 2024.[69] During the conference, Huawei formerly announced in-house Cangjie programming language for the new native system alongside releasing the Developer Preview Beta recruitment program.[70]

On October 22, 2024, at the Huawei HarmonyOS Next event, it was officially revealed as "pure blood" HarmonyOS NEXT 5 brand transitioning to HarmonyOS 5, incorporated as HarmonyOS 5.0.0 version, for public beta with 2025 expansions. Ahead of flagship devices with stable builds factory in November.[71]

On October 22, 2025, Huawei announced Harmony OS 6.[72]

Features

[edit]

User interface

[edit]

The HarmonyOS interface is overhauled with native HarmonyOS Design system as "Harmonious aesthetics" philosophy [73] by Yang Zhiyan, Chief UX Designer at Huawei Consumer BG or the native launcher system that has an emphasis on 'vivid' system colours and reflective 'spatial' visual of light, blur, glow with glassmorphism and neumorphism soft UI that is a medium between skeuomorphism and flat design. In addition to standard folders that require tapping on them to display their contents, folders can be enlarged to always show their contents without text labels directly on the home screen.[74]

Apps can support "snippets", which expose a portion of the app's functionality (such as a media player's controls, or a weather forecast) via an iOS style pop-up window by swiping left after holding the app icon in context menu, and can be pinned to the home screen as a widget. Apps and services can provide cards; as of HarmonyOS 3.0, cards can also be displayed as widgets with different sizes and shapes to adapt to the home screen layout, and can also be stacked.[75][76]

The user interface font of HarmonyOS on HarmonyOS Next base is HarmonyOS Sans. It is designed to be easy to read, unique, and universal. The system font was used throughout the operating system alongside previous Android-based EMUI 12 and up, including third-party HarmonyOS and former Android apps.[77]

Applications

[edit]

Devices come with applications preinstalled. Further apps can be downloaded from the Huawei App Gallery. From Harmony OS 1 to Harmony OS 4, the OS was heavily based on Android. This allowed the vast majority of Android apps to be used. Since the introduction of Harmony OS NEXT and further versions such as Harmony OS 6, only native apps are available. As of June 2025, there were 30,000 apps available.[78]

Software

[edit]

Traditional apps

[edit]

Unlike Meta Services that are installation-free, traditional apps need installation. They are available to users through Huawei AppGallery, which serves as the application store for HarmonyOS with HarmonyOS-native apps.[79][80] HarmonyOS-native apps have access to capabilities such as distributed communications and cards.[81][82]

Quick apps

[edit]

Similar to applets, Quick apps were single-page apps written using JavaScript and CSS, with code volume about one fifth of that of a traditional app.[83][84] They are developed based on the industry standards formulated by the Quick App Alliance, comprising mainstream mobile phone manufacturers in China.[85][86]

Quick apps are available to users through the AppGallery, Quick App Center, Huawei Assistant, etc., on supported devices. They are installation-free, updated automatically, and their shortcuts can be added by users to the home screen for ease of access.[85][87]

Meta Services

[edit]

Managed and distributed by Huawei Ability Gallery, Meta Services (formerly, Atomic Services) are lightweight and consist of one or more HarmonyOS Ability Packages (HAPs) to implement specific convenient services, providing users with dynamic content and functionality.[88] They are accessible via the Service Center from devices, and presented as cards that can be added to a favorite list or pinned to the home screen.

Meta Services are installation-free since the accompanying code is downloaded in the background.[89][88][90] They can also be synchronized across multiple devices, such as updating the driver's location on the watch in real time after the user hails a taxi on the mobile phone.[91]

Service Collaboration Kit

[edit]

The Service Collaboration Kit (SCK) provides users with cross-device interaction, allowing them to use the camera, scanning, and gallery functions of other devices. For example, tablets or 2-in-1 laptops can utilize these features from a connected smartphone. To utilize these features, both devices running HarmonyOS NEXT must be logged into the same Huawei account and have WLAN and Bluetooth enabled.[92]

Harmony Intelligence

[edit]

Harmony Intelligence allows users to deploy AI-based applications on HarmonyOS, using PanGu 5.0 LLM and its embedded variants, alongside new Celia capabilities, HiAI Foundation Kit, MindSpore Lite Kit, Neural Network Runtime Kit, and Computer Vision. These features improve performance, reduce power consumption, and enable efficient AI processing on devices with Kirin chips.[93][94][95][96][97]

Super Device

[edit]

HarmonyOS supports cross-platform interactions between supported devices via the "Super Device" interface; devices are paired via a "radar" screen by dragging icons to the centre of the screen.[98][99][100][101] Examples of Super Device features include allowing users to play back media saved inside a smartphone through a paired PC, smart TV or speakers; share PC screen recordings back to a smartphone; run multiple phone apps in a PC window; share files between a paired smartphone and PC; share application states between the paired devices, etc.[102][103][104]

[edit]

Incorporated into HarmonyOS 4, NearLink (previously known as SparkLink) is a set of standards that combine the strengths of traditional wireless technologies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, while emphasizing improved performance in areas like response time, energy efficiency, signal range, and security. It consists of two access modes: SparkLink Low Energy (SLE) and SparkLink Basic (SLB). SLE is designed for low-power consumption, low-latency, and high-reliability applications, with a data transmission rate reportedly up to 6 times that of Bluetooth; SLB is tailored for high-speed, high-capacity, and high-precision applications, with a data transmission rate reportedly around 2 times that of Wi-Fi.[105][106][107][108]

Hardware

[edit]

HarmonyOS platform was not designed for a single device at the beginning but developed as a distributed operating system for various devices with memory sizes ranging from 128KB to over 4GB. Hence, the hardware requirements are flexible for the operating system and it may only need 128KB of memory for a variety of smart terminal devices.[109][110]

Devices

[edit]

Harmony OS largely powers Huawei devices. This includes smartphones, tablets, laptops, and smartwatches.

The following devices use Harmony OS with the Harmonys OS microkernel instead of the Android AOSP core.

Device Release date
Huawei nova 14 series[111] 19 May 2025
Huawei Pura 80 series[112] 11 June 2025
Huawei Mate XTs Ultimate[113] 29 September 2025
The Huawei P30 is one of several Huawei devices to run HarmonyOS.

Huawei stated that HarmonyOS would initially be used on devices targeting the Chinese market. The company's former subsidiary brand, Honor, unveiled the Honor Vision line of smart TVs as the first consumer electronics devices to run HarmonyOS in August 2019.[114][43] The HarmonyOS 2.0 beta launched on 16 December 2020 and supported the P30 series, P40 series, Mate 30 series, Mate 40 series, P50 series, and the MatePad Pro.[115]

Stable HarmonyOS 2.0 was released for smartphones and tablets as updates for the P40 and Mate X2 in June 2021. New Huawei Watch, MatePad Pro and PixLab X1 desktop printer models shipping with HarmonyOS were also unveiled at the time.[48][49][116] In October 2021, HarmonyOS 2.0 had over 150 million users.[117][118]

Development

[edit]

Architecture

[edit]

HarmonyOS is designed with a layered architecture, which consists of four layers; the kernel layer at the bottom provides the upper three layers, i.e., the system service layer, framework layer and application layer, with basic kernel capabilities, such as process and thread management, memory management, file system, network management, and peripheral management.[119]

The kernel layer incorporates a subsystem that accommodates HarmonyOS kernel based on microkernel as Rich Executed Environment (REE), catering to diverse smart devices. Depending on the device type, different kernels can be selected; for instance, like OpenHarmony base itself but with a single kernel, lightweight systems are chosen for low-power devices like watches and IoT devices to execute lightweight HarmonyOS apps, whereas large-memory devices like mobile phones, tablets, and PCs utilize standard system. The dual-app framework was replaced with a single-app framework in HarmonyOS Next, supporting only native HarmonyOS apps with APP format.[120]

The system includes a communication base called DSoftBus for integrating physically separate devices into a virtual Super Device, allowing one device to control others and sharing data among devices with distributed communication capabilities.[121][122][123] "To address security concerns" arising from varying devices, the system provides a hardware-based Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) microkernel to prevent leakage of sensitive personal data when they are stored or processed.[124]

It supports several forms of apps, including native apps that can be installed from AppGallery, installation-free Quick apps and lightweight Meta Services accessible by users on various devices.[125][126][127][128]

Android fork

[edit]
See also: Criticism of Huawei

When it launched the operating system, Huawei stated that HarmonyOS plans to become a microkernel-based, distributed OS that was completely different from Android and iOS in terms of target market towards Internet of things.[129] A Huawei spokesperson subsequently stated that HarmonyOS supported multiple kernels and used a Linux kernel if a device had a large amount of RAM, and that the company had taken advantage of a large number of third-party open-source resources, including Linux kernel with POSIX APIs on OpenHarmony base, as a foundation to accelerate the development of its unified system stack as a future-proof, microkernel-based, and distributed OS running on multiple devices.[130][131][49]

At its launch as an operating system for smartphones in 2021, HarmonyOS was, however, rumored by Ars Technica to be a "rebranded version of Android and EMUI" with nearly "identical code bases".[132] Following the release of the HarmonyOS 2.0 beta, Ars Technica and XDA Developers suggested that "the smartphone version of the OS had been forked from Android 10". Ars Technica alleged that it resembled the existing EMUI software used on Huawei devices, but with all references to "Android" replaced by "HarmonyOS". It was also noted that the DevEco Studio software based on JetBrains open source IntelliJ IDEA IDE "shared components and tool chains" with Android Studio.

When testing the new MatePad Pro in June 2021, Android Authority and The Verge similarly observed similarities in "behavior", including that it was possible to install apps from Android APK files on the HarmonyOS-based tablet, and to run the Android 10 easter egg apk app, reaffirming earlier rumor mills.[130][49]

In December 2022, some Chinese users discovered that, after switching the language to English in HarmonyOS 3.0, the "System" app would display as "Android System," which once again sparked controversy. Huawei subsequently released an urgent patch to remove the reference to Android.[133]

Relationship with OpenEuler

[edit]
See also: EulerOS

In terms of architecture, HarmonyOS has close relationship with OpenEuler, which is a community edition of EulerOS, as they have implemented the sharing of kernel technology as revealed by Deng Taihua, President of Huawei's Computing Product Line.[134] The sharing is reportedly to be strengthened in the future in the areas of the distributed software bus, system security, app framework, device driver framework and new programming language.[135]

Relationship with OpenHarmony

[edit]
See also: OpenHarmony

OpenHarmony is an open-source version of HarmonyOS donated by Huawei to the OpenAtom Foundation, built around a LiteOS kernel descended from original LiteOS operating system. It supports devices running a mini system such as printers, speakers, smartwatches and any other smart device with memory as small as 128 KB, or running a standard system with memory greater than 128 MB.[136] The open-source operating system contains the basic capabilities of HarmonyOS and does not depend on the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) code.[137]

HarmonyOS NEXT

[edit]
Main article: HarmonyOS NEXT

On August 4, 2023, at Huawei Developers Conference 2023 (HDC), Huawei officially announced HarmonyOS NEXT, the next iteration system version of HarmonyOS, supporting only native APP apps via Ark Compiler with Huawei Mobile Services (HMS), and ending the support for Android apk apps.[138]

Built on a custom version of OpenHarmony, HarmonyOS NEXT proprietary system has the HarmonyOS microkernel at its core with a single framework, departing from the common Linux kernel and aimed to replace the current multi-kernel HarmonyOS.[11]

Among the first batch of over 200 developers, McDonald's and KFC in China became two of the first multinational food companies to adopt HarmonyOS Next.[139][140]

App development

[edit]

The primary IDE known as DevEco Studio for developing HarmonyOS apps was released by Huawei on September 9, 2020, based on IntelliJ IDEA and Huawei's SmartAssist.[141] The IDE includes DevEco Device Tool,[142] an integrated development tool for customizing HarmonyOS components, coding, compiling and visual debugging, similar to other third party IDEs such as Visual Studio Code for Windows, Linux and macOS.[143]

HarmonyOS uses App Pack files suffixed with .app, also known as APP files, for distribution of software via AppGallery. Each App Pack has one or more HarmonyOS Ability Packages (HAP) containing code for their abilities, resources, libraries, and a JSON file with configuration information.[144]

HarmonyOS as a universal single IoT platform allows developers to write apps once and run everywhere across devices such as phones, tablets, personal computers, TVs, cars, smartwatches, single board computers under OpenHarmony, and screen-less IoT devices such as smart speakers.[145]

As of October 2024, there were reportedly over 6.75 million registered developers participated in developing HarmonyOS apps.[146]

ArkUI

[edit]
ArkUI
DeveloperHuawei
Initial releaseOctober 22, 2021
Operating systemHarmonyOS, OpenHarmony, Oniro
TypeSoftware framework
Licenseopen source, Apache License[147]
Websitehttps://developer.harmonyos.com/en/develop/arkUI

Applications for HarmonyOS are mostly built using components of ArkUI, a Declarative User Interface framework. ArkUI is a declarative based user interface framework for building user interfaces on native HarmonyOS, OpenHarmony alongside Oniro applications developed by Huawei for the ArkTS and Cangjie programming language.[148]

ArkUI elements are adaptable to various devices and include new interface rules with automatic updates along with HarmonyOS updates.[149]

ArkUI 3.0 is declarative in eTS (extended TypeScript) in HarmonyOS 3.0, followed by main ArkTS programming language in HarmonyOS 3.1, contrasting with the imperative syntax used in Java development in earlier versions of HarmonyOS in HarmonyOS 1.0 and 2.0. ArkUI allows for 2D drawing as well as 3D drawing, animations, event handling, Service Card widgets, and data binding. ArkUI automatically synchronizes between UI views and data.[150]

ArkUI integrates with DevEco Studio IDE to provide for real-time previews during editing,[151] alongside support for debugging and other development features.[152]

ArkJS is designed for web development with a Vue 2-like syntax, providing a familiar environment for web developers using JS and CSS. ArkJS incorporates the HarmonyOS Markup Language (HML), which allows attributes prefixed with @ for MVVM architectural pattern.[153][150][154]

History

[edit]

During HDC 2021 on October 22, 2021, the HarmonyOS 3.0 developer preview introduced ArkUI 3.0 for eTS, JS programming languages with ArkCompiler. Compared to previous versions of ArkUI 1.0 and 2.0 under imperative development with Java in earlier versions of HarmonyOS.[155]

During HDC 2022 HarmonyOS 3.1 in November 2022, Huawei ArkUI evolved into full declarative development featuring declarative UI capabilities, improved layout ability, component capability improvement and others. In April 2023, HarmonyOS 3.1 Beta 1 build included ArkUI declarative 2D and 3D drawing capabilities. The upgrade also improves layout, component, and app state management capabilities.[156]

During HDC 2023, August 2023, Huawei announced HarmonyOS 4.0 improvements of ArkUI with ArkTS alongside native HarmonyOS NEXT software development using Ark Engine with ArkGraphics 2D and ArkGraphics 3D. Also, the company announced a cross platform extension of ArkUI called ArkUI-X which would allow developers to run applications across Android, iOS and HarmonyOS under one project using DevEco Studio IDE and Visual Studio Code plugins. On January 18, 2024, during HarmonyOS Ecology Conference, Huawei revealed the HarmonyOS NEXT software stack, that included ArkUI/ArkUI-X programming framework with the Ark Compiler/BiSheng Compiler/Ark Runtime compiler & runtime, for both ArkTS and incoming Cangjie programming language [zh].[157]

ArkUI-X

[edit]
ArkUI-X
DeveloperHuawei
Initial releaseDecember 8, 2023
Operating systemAndroid, iOS, OpenHarmony, Oniro, HarmonyOS, Web platform (ArkJS)
TypeApplication framework
LicenseApache License
Websitehttps://developer.harmonyos.com/en/develop/arkUI

ArkUI-X is an open-source UI software development kit which is the extension of ArkUI created for building cross platform applications, including Android, iOS targets additionally.[158] Web platform support with ArkJS was released on December 8, 2023.[159] ArkUI-X consists of both a UI language and a rendering engine.[160]

Features

[edit]

The ArkUI architecture is divided into three layers: the top layer offers a declarative UI paradigm; the middle layer consists of the Ark Compiler and runtime, the UI backend engine, and the rendering engine; and the bottom layer serves as the platform adaptation and bridging layer.[158]

System components are built-in components within the ArkUI framework, categorized into container components and basic components. For example, Row and Column are container components that can hold other components, while Text and Button are basic components.[161]

Examples

[edit]

The following is an example of a simple Hello World program. It is standard practice in ArkUI to separate the application struct and views into different structs, with the main view named Index.[162] 

import ArkTS
// Index.ets

import router from '@ohos.router';

@Entry
@Component
struct Index {
  @State message: string = 'Hello World'

  build() {
    Row() {
      Column() {
        Text(this.message)
          .fontSize(50)
          .fontWeight(FontWeight.Bold)
        // Add a button to respond to user clicks.
        Button() {
          Text('Next')
            .fontSize(30)
            .fontWeight(FontWeight.Bold)
        }
        .type(ButtonType.Capsule)
        .margin({
          top: 20
        })
        .backgroundColor('#0D9FFB')
        .width('40%')
        .height('5%')
        // Bind the onClick event to the Next button so that clicking the button redirects the user to the second page.
        .onClick(() => {
          router.pushUrl({ url: 'pages/Second' })
        })
      }
      .width('100%')
    }
    .height('100%')
  }
}

The @ohos.router routing library implements page transitions, which must be declared in the main_pages.json file before being invoked.[163]

HarmonyOS ecosystem

[edit]

HarmonyOS Connect

[edit]

On May 18, 2021, Huawei revealed a plan to upgrade its HarmonyOS Connect brand with a standard badge during a summit in Shanghai to help industrial partners in producing, selling and operating products with third-party OEMs as part of the HarmonyOS system, framework and the Huawei Smart Life (formerly Huawei AI Life) app.

Allowing for fast and low-cost connections to users, smart devices like speakers, fridges and cookers of different brands powered by HarmonyOS can be connected and merged into a super device with a single touch of smartphone without the need to install apps. Also, HiLink protocols for mesh and wireless routers connectivity with devices alongside other smart devices that are platform agnostic that connects to HarmonyOS devices.[164]

The HarmonyOS Connect sets the platform apart from traditional mobile and computing platforms and the company's previous ecosystem attempts with its Android based EMUI and LiteOS connectivity in the past.[165]

HarmonyOS Cockpit

[edit]

On April 27, 2021, Huawei launched a smart cockpit solution powered by HarmonyOS for electric and autonomous cars powered by its Kirin line of a system-on-chip (SoC) solution. Huawei opened up APIs to help automobile OEMs, suppliers and ecosystem partners in developing features to meet user requirements.

Huawei designed a modular SoC for cars that will be pluggable and easy to upgrade to maintain the peak performance of the cockpit. Users would be able to upgrade the chipset as one can upgrade on an assembled desktop computer with its scalable distributed OS.[166]

On December 21, 2021, Huawei launched a new smart console brand, HarmonySpace, a specialized HarmonyOS vehicle operating system. Based on Huawei's 1+8 ecology, apps on smartphones and tablets can be connected to the car seamlessly with HarmonySpace, which also provides smartphone projection capability.[167][168]

On December 23, 2021, Huawei announced a new smart select car product – AITO M5, a medium-size SUV with HarmonyOS ecosystem through continuous AI learning optimization and over-the-air upgrades.[169] On July 4, 2022, Huawei officially launched AITO smart select car product to be shipped to customers sometime in August 2022. During the launch, the company received 10,000 pre-orders in 2 hours for its M7 model.[170]

Huawei MagLink built on interconnected Cockpit solution, enables drivers to make the mobile phone application full amount of car, no need for telephony navigation. Huawei's car solution through seamless HarmonyOS system application, eliminate the need for drivers to use mobile phone navigation nor the need to install mobile phone holders. With this solution, enables more built in accessible entertainment and information services. The integration of software and hardware technologies installed on the car, achieving “mobile whole-house intelligence.”[171]

MineHarmony OS

[edit]

On 14 September 2021, Huawei announced the launch of MineHarmony OS (Chinese: 矿鸿; pinyin: Kuànghóng), a customized operating system by Huawei based on its in-house HarmonyOS based on OpenHarmony for industrial use. MineHarmony is compatible with about 400 types of underground coal mining equipment, providing the equipment with a single interface to transmit and collect data for analysis. Wang Chenglu, President of Huawei's consumer business AI and smart full-scenario business department, indicated that the launch of MineHarmony OS signified that the HarmonyOS ecology had taken a step further from B2C to B2B.[172][173][174]

Trademarks

[edit]

In May 2019, Huawei applied for registration of the trademark "Hongmeng" through the Chinese Patent Office CNIPA, but the application was rejected in pursuance to Article 30 of the PRC Trade Mark Law, citing the trademark was similar to that of "CRM Hongmeng" in graphic design and "Hongmeng" in Chinese word.[175]

In less than a week before launching HarmonyOS 2.0 and new devices by Huawei, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court announced the first-instance judgement in May 2021 to uphold the decision by CNIPA as the trademark was not sufficiently distinctive in terms of its designated services.[176][177]

However, it was reported that the trademark had officially been transferred from Huizhou Qibei Technology to Huawei by end of May 2021.[178]

On October 22, 2024, It has been reported that Huawei has applied for registration of more than 400 HarmonyOS related trademarks in China.[179]

Reception

[edit]

Market share

[edit]

Current data

[edit]

As of Q2 2025, Harmony OS had a 4.25% market share for the most recent year. This made Harmony OS the third largest smartphone OS worldwide after Android with 77.25% market share, and iOS with 18.50% market share. [180]

Historic data

[edit]

On December 23, 2021, Yu Chengdong, CEO of Huawei Consumer Business Group, claimed that HarmonyOS had reached 300 million smartphones and other smart devices, including 200 million devices in the ecosystem and 100 million third-party consumer products from industry partners.[181]

Market research conducted in China by Strategy Analytics showed that Harmony OS was the third largest smartphone platform after Apple iOS and Google Android, reaching a record high of 4% market share in China during the first quarter of 2022, up from zero just a year earlier. This increase in market share took place after the operating system was also launched for smartphone devices in June 2021.

The research claimed that in the first quarter of 2022 the platform outgrew its rivals, such as Android and Apple iOS, from a low install base of about 150 million smart devices overall, particularly due to the good support in China and the HarmonyOS software upgrades that Huawei made available for its older handset models and its former sub-brands such as Honor.[182][183]

On August 8, 2022, after the soft launch of HarmonyOS 3, Sina Finance, part of Sina Corporation, and Huawei Central reported that the number of Huawei HarmonyOS Connect devices had exceeded 470 million units. By summer 2022, 14 OpenHarmony distributions had been launched.[184][185]

In the third quarter of 2023, HarmonyOS captured a 3% share of the global smartphone market and 13% within China, despite Huawei's limitation to LTE at the time.[186] At the launch of HarmonyOS 4 in August 2023, it was noted that the operating system had been integrated into over 700 million devices. By January 18, 2024, during Huawei's HarmonyOS Ecology Conference in China, this number had risen to over 800 million devices, as reported by Huawei.[187][188]

In the first quarter of 2024, HarmonyOS reached a 4% market share globally and captured 17% of the Chinese market, surpassing iOS to become the second largest mobile platform domestically, as reported by Counterpoint Research on May 25, 2024.[189][190] During the HDC 2024 keynote conference, it was announced that HarmonyOS had reached 900 million active users on June 21, 2024.[191]

On October 22, 2024, Huawei announced at its HarmonyOS NEXT 5 event that the HarmonyOS platform had 1 billion active users.[192] In the first quarter of 2025, HarmonyOS increased its market share globally to 5%; it also held 19% of the Chinese market, an increase of 2 percentage points over the same quarter in 2024.[193]

Statements

[edit]
  • Nanjing's Digital Economy Industry Department Director, Zheng Wei, announced that the city is committed to "fully supporting the HarmonyOS ecosystem and establishing a 'HarmonyOS City'."[194]
  • Taobao claims that the ArkUI version of its app achieves checkout page performance 1.5 times faster than the Android version.[195]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

HarmonyOS

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia

HarmonyOS is a family of microkernel-based, distributed operating systems developed by Huawei Technologies for consumer electronics, including smartphones, tablets, wearables, and Internet of Things devices, emphasizing seamless cross-device collaboration and resource sharing.
Originally conceived around 2015 for IoT applications, its development accelerated following U.S. export restrictions in 2019 that barred Huawei from Google Mobile Services, prompting the OS's public unveiling as a purported Android alternative.
Initial versions, such as HarmonyOS 2.0 released in 2021, incorporated substantial code from the Android Open Source Project, enabling Android app compatibility despite Huawei's assertions of foundational independence, as verified by code decompilation showing Android internals and tools functioning identically.
Subsequent iterations culminated in HarmonyOS NEXT, launched in 2024, which discards Android compatibility in favor of a native app ecosystem built on Huawei's proprietary kernel and frameworks, aiming for enhanced performance, security, and decoupling from foreign software dependencies.
Key defining characteristics include deterministic latency management for responsive multitasking, modular architecture supporting one-time app development for multi-device deployment, and distributed virtual bus technology for real-time inter-device communication, though ecosystem maturity outside China remains limited by app availability and geopolitical barriers.

Origins and Naming

Etymology and Branding Evolution

The Chinese name for the operating system, Hongmeng (鸿蒙), originates from mythology and , denoting the primordial chaos or undifferentiated state of the prior to creation, as described in texts like the Zhuangzi. This etymology underscores Huawei's intent to position the OS as a foundational platform enabling a new era of and device interoperability. Huawei selected HarmonyOS as the global English branding upon the system's public announcement on August 9, , to convey themes of seamless integration and ecological balance across devices, drawing from the harmonious connotations absent in direct translations like "Genesis," which was already associated with other technologies. The company retained Hongmeng OS for the domestic Chinese market while deploying HarmonyOS internationally to facilitate broader adoption and sidestep potential linguistic or cultural mismatches. Trademark registrations for Hongmeng encountered obstacles in , where the National Administration rejected Huawei's applications, deeming the term descriptive or lacking distinctiveness; a court upheld this in May 2021, though persisted with its use under established branding practices. No equivalent U.S. trademark rejection directly prompted the HarmonyOS pivot, as the English name was chosen proactively for global resonance rather than regulatory compulsion. Branding evolved further with the introduction of HarmonyOS NEXT in late 2023, designating the architecture's transition to full independence from Android dependencies, emphasizing a native app ecosystem. By October 2025, launched HarmonyOS 6, omitting the "NEXT" suffix to streamline versioning and reflect the platform's maturation as the standard HarmonyOS lineage, with public betas rolling out to select devices. This shift consolidated branding under a unified HarmonyOS identity, aligning with ongoing ecosystem expansions.

Strategic Motivations Behind Development

The development of HarmonyOS was initially driven by Huawei's anticipation of the (IoT) era, where a capable of seamless integration across diverse devices—from smartphones to sensors—would be essential for efficient resource sharing and real-time collaboration. Huawei began conceptualizing such a system around , motivated by the limitations of existing monolithic OS architectures in handling the projected explosion of connected devices and AI-driven applications. This first-principles approach emphasized building a microkernel-based foundation for "super virtual devices," enabling capabilities like cross-device task migration without reliance on centralized control, which Huawei viewed as a foundational requirement for future ecosystems rather than an incremental patch to Android. US export controls imposed in May 2019, placing on the Entity List and restricting access to American technologies including , catalyzed an acceleration of these efforts toward full OS independence. The sanctions exposed 's vulnerability to geopolitical disruptions in supply chains for foreign , prompting a strategic pivot to insulate its hardware ecosystem from such dependencies and mitigate risks of service revocation that could render devices obsolete. executives, including founder , framed this as a necessity to "dare to lead the world" in software innovation, investing billions annually to cultivate domestic alternatives amid blocked access to Android's ecosystem. At its core, the push for HarmonyOS reflected Huawei's broader pursuit of technological sovereignty, aiming to control the software stack and foster a self-reliant developer community less susceptible to extraterritorial enforcement of foreign policies. This involved reducing exposure to US-dominated standards vulnerable to weaponization, while capitalizing on China's domestic market to build scale—evident in HarmonyOS's rapid adoption for IoT and consumer devices post-sanctions. Critics from Western sources have questioned the timeline, suggesting sanctions were the primary impetus rather than organic IoT foresight, but Huawei's pre-2019 investments in related projects like substantiate an underlying vision extended by external pressures.

Historical Development

Pre-Launch Foundations (2012-2019)

Huawei began developing in 2012 as a lightweight, tailored for (IoT) devices, prioritizing low power consumption, fast response times, and suitability for resource-constrained embedded systems. This RTOS formed the initial kernel foundation, incorporating a design to enable efficient, modular operation in sensors, wearables, and other low-end hardware, with internal prototypes undergoing testing for real-time and connectivity in distributed environments. By the mid-2010s, Huawei's internal R&D expanded capabilities toward a broader distributed OS framework, integrating for device and cloud-device interactions, while maintaining focus on for multi-device ecosystems beyond isolated IoT nodes. Prototyping emphasized causal reliability in interconnected setups, such as seamless among embedded systems, to address limitations in proprietary kernels like those in Android for non-mobile scenarios. The conceptual maturation culminated in a public demonstration on August 9, 2019, at the Developer Conference (HDC 2019), where prototypes running early HarmonyOS showcased distributed collaboration across TVs, routers, and IoT hardware, explicitly framed as a strategic counter to the Android-iOS duopoly's control over smart ecosystems. This reveal highlighted the system's microkernel-driven real-time determinism and cross-device resource pooling, derived from years of LiteOS-derived internal validation, without disclosing full codebase details at the time.

Initial Rollouts and Android Compatibility (2019-2023)

HarmonyOS 1.0 was first commercially deployed on August 9, 2019, powering Huawei's Honor Vision series of smart televisions, marking the operating system's initial rollout beyond prototypes. This version targeted IoT devices, utilizing a kernel for low-resource hardware alongside a compatibility layer derived from the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) to support existing applications. The launch occurred amid escalating U.S. trade restrictions on , which had severed access to (GMS) and full Android ecosystem support starting May 2019, prompting the need for an alternative platform capable of running Android-compatible apps via APK . In 2020, HarmonyOS expanded to smartphones with , beginning with beta testing on the series in November, following the device's October launch initially on 11. Stable rollout to Mate 40 models and select prior flagships like the P40 series commenced in June 2021, enabling broader consumer device adoption while retaining AOSP-based kernel elements up to equivalents for seamless APK execution. This compatibility layer, including Linux kernel abstractions from AOSP, allowed HarmonyOS devices to install and run unmodified Android apps, though without official Store integration due to sanctions. Critics and analysts debated whether early HarmonyOS constituted a genuine new OS or merely an Android fork, citing the heavy reliance on AOSP code for app framework and runtime support, which Huawei refuted by emphasizing its distributed architecture and multi-kernel flexibility. Subsequent updates in versions 3.0 (public beta June 2021, stable later that year) and 4.0 (beta July 2023, stable August 2023) incrementally incorporated more native APIs and app formats like .app packages, reducing but not eliminating AOSP dependencies for mobile editions. These versions supported APK installations alongside native apps, facilitating growth to over 900 million active devices by mid-2024, a achieved despite ongoing U.S. export controls limiting advanced chip access and international . reported shipping tens of millions of -enabled smartphones annually in during this period, leveraging domestic app stores and to circumvent GMS absence, though global expansion remained constrained. The persistence of Android compatibility through AOSP layers ensured backward compatibility for developers but highlighted 's transitional nature, with full native independence deferred to later iterations.

Shift to Full Independence with HarmonyOS NEXT (2024 Onward)

HarmonyOS NEXT, designated as version , marked Huawei's complete departure from Android Open Source Project (AOSP) dependencies, adopting the proprietary Hongmeng microkernel exclusively for native application support. This shift, announced for public beta rollout on October 22, 2024, initially targeted devices such as the Pura 70 and Pocket 2 series smartphones, emphasizing a unified framework derived from rather than Android's base. The architecture ensures incompatibility with Android apps, requiring developers to rebuild using HarmonyOS-specific APIs, thereby achieving full technical independence amid U.S. export restrictions on services. Subsequent updates, including HarmonyOS 5.0.1 released in early 2025, extended support to flagship devices like the Mate 70 series, MateBook Fold PCs, and MatePad tablets, enhancing stability and core functionalities. committed to deploying HarmonyOS NEXT across all new devices launched in 2025, solidifying the ecosystem's divergence from prior hybrid models that retained Android compatibility layers. By mid-2025, installations of HarmonyOS 5.0 exceeded 17 million devices, with projections aiming for 30 million by year-end, reflecting accelerated driven by pre-installation on premium hardware. In October 2025, Huawei initiated the public beta for HarmonyOS 6.0, building on NEXT's foundation with enhancements in AI-driven security and user interface refinements. Key additions include an AI anti-fraud system for scam detection and family protection, alongside UI optimizations for smoother interactions across distributed devices. The beta rollout targeted over 90 models in China, including the Mate 70 series, with closed betas scheduled for later that month to prepare for broader stable releases. This iteration further integrates generative AI capabilities, prioritizing privacy protections like anti-peeping features and encrypted sharing, while maintaining the native-only app ecosystem.

Technical Architecture

Microkernel Design and Core Components

The Hongmeng Kernel, utilized in HarmonyOS NEXT, implements a general-purpose architecture that isolates critical system services to enhance security and reliability. This design minimizes (IPC) overhead through flexible hierarchical composition, allowing selective relaxation of isolation between trusted services while maintaining a modular . Compared to monolithic kernels like , the approach yields a smaller (TCB), reducing the scope of code requiring verification and enabling finer-grained fault isolation to prevent system-wide failures from localized errors. Empirical evaluations demonstrate that this configuration supports efficient handling of complex tasks across diverse devices without compromising operation. Key core components include the Ark Compiler, which optimizes cross-device code generation through ahead-of-time (AOT) and just-in-time () compilation pipelines tailored for heterogeneous hardware. The distributed soft bus (DSoftBus) underpins inter-device coordination by providing a protocol for and resource sharing in distributed scenarios. HarmonyOS incorporates a Deterministic Latency Engine that preemptively assigns task priorities and enforces scheduling deadlines based on real-time load forecasting, delivering predictable response times essential for real-time applications. This contrasts with the probabilistic scheduling in Linux-derived systems, where latency variability arises from dynamic priority inversions and contention. Huawei reports that this engine allocates resources toward high-priority tasks with millisecond-level precision, improving responsiveness in multimedia and IoT contexts.

Evolution from Android Dependencies

Prior to the release of HarmonyOS NEXT in late 2024, earlier versions of HarmonyOS incorporated an Android Open Source Project (AOSP) compatibility layer in user space, enabling the installation and execution of Android APK files alongside as a substitute for . This architecture stemmed from U.S. export restrictions imposed in May , which barred from accessing apps and services, yet permitted use of the open-source AOSP base for app compatibility and rapid market continuity. However, this reliance exposed devices to functional gaps in apps dependent on , such as push notifications or location services, underscoring incomplete independence despite 's marketing of HarmonyOS as a distinct system from its announcement. HarmonyOS NEXT, announced in August 2023 and commercially launched on October 22, 2024, for devices like the Mate 70 series, eliminated the AOSP layer entirely, rendering APK files incompatible and mandating native applications in Huawei's Ability Package (HAP) format built with ArkTS and ArkUI frameworks. This shift extended to the kernel, replacing the prior multi-kernel setup—including for smartphones—with a unified HarmonyOS derived from , removing all traces of code and AOSP abstractions to achieve verifiable divergence from Android's architecture. asserts this kernel design yields three times greater memory efficiency than equivalents, prioritizing deterministic latency and modularity over Android's monolithic structure, though independent benchmarks remain limited as of 2025. By September 2024, over 10,000 native apps had been ported or developed for HarmonyOS NEXT, expanding to more than 20,000 by January 2025, with targeting 100,000 by year-end through incentives for developers to migrate from Android codebases while adapting to native distributed capabilities. While this progression substantiates 's claims of architectural independence—contrasting with pre-NEXT versions critiqued as rebranded Android—residual developer tools retain conceptual similarities to Android APIs for transition ease, such as service-oriented app models, without embedding AOSP code. True autonomy is thus evidenced by the enforced rewrite of apps and kernel overhaul, though scale lags behind Android's millions, reflecting the causal trade-offs of sanctions-driven innovation over incremental evolution.

Relations to Open-Source Projects: OpenHarmony and OpenEuler

is an open-source framework initiated by and donated to the OpenAtom Foundation in , serving as the foundational codebase for HarmonyOS while enabling third-party implementations decoupled from Android's open-source project (AOSP). Unlike HarmonyOS, which incorporates proprietary Huawei-developed components for enhanced performance and integration, operates under the 2.0, allowing full access to its source code for customization across devices with varying resource constraints, from low-end IoT sensors (128 KiB RAM) to higher-end systems. This structure has facilitated adoption beyond Huawei's hardware, including in automotive systems and development boards from partners supporting architectures like , , and x86, though primarily within China's ecosystem where over 70 organizations contribute to its development. OpenEuler, another Huawei-donated open-source project under OpenAtom since 2020, functions as a tailored for servers, cloud, and , forked from with a focus on digital infrastructure. It shares kernel elements with HarmonyOS, including integration of distributed soft bus technology for seamless cross-device connectivity between end-user HarmonyOS devices and server-side openEuler environments, particularly in IoT and enterprise scenarios. However, HarmonyOS prioritizes kernel optimizations—such as its in the NEXT iteration—for real-time efficiency and security, diverging from openEuler's Linux-based kernel to achieve reported performance gains without full open-sourcing of these enhancements. These initiatives promote selective openness by providing accessible bases for expansion, with enabling non-proprietary device OS variants and openEuler supporting infrastructure interoperability. Yet, analyses highlight limitations in genuine openness, as retains over critical layers in HarmonyOS, constraining deep third-party replication of its full capabilities compared to AOSP's comprehensive openness, which fosters broader global innovation without such vendor-locked optimizations. This contributor-led model, while accelerating domestic adoption—evidenced by rapid community growth—raises questions about long-term vitality reliant on 's controlled contributions rather than fully decentralized .

Key Features and Capabilities

User Interface and Interaction Paradigms

HarmonyOS adopts a service-oriented interface paradigm, shifting emphasis from traditional app-centric navigation to modular, contextual interactions via widgets and cards that deliver specific functionalities without requiring full application launches. Introduced in HarmonyOS 2.0 in June 2021, Service Widgets enable users to swipe upward on an app icon for immediate access to core tasks, such as previewing content or executing actions like navigation or media controls, reducing steps compared to conventional app openings. This approach integrates with the Service Center, where diagonal swipes from screen edges summon aggregated meta-services, allowing cross-app previews and quick toggles in a unified panel. Subsequent versions refined this model for fluidity, with HarmonyOS 3.0 and 4.0 expanding widget customization and gesture-based task continuity across screens. In HarmonyOS 6, entering public beta on October 21, 2025, the interface features responsive animations triggered by user inputs, gravity-simulating dynamic wallpapers, and adaptive lockscreen elements that adjust via ambient light sensors for contextual relevance, such as auto-shifting themes based on environmental . These updates prioritize visual feedback, with immersive transitions and optimized element scaling reported to minimize perceived latency in daily operations. The Task Center complements this by facilitating multitasking through swipeable task cards, enabling seamless app switching and parallel operations, which reviewers have noted as more cohesive than Android's recents overview in distributed scenarios, though reliant on device ecosystem . Early global user experiences highlight an adaptation phase for those accustomed to Western Android skins, attributed to gesture-heavy navigation and service abstraction, but praise efficiency gains in repetitive tasks once familiarized.

Distributed Device Collaboration and Super Device

Distributed device collaboration in HarmonyOS leverages a distributed soft bus (DSoftBus) to enable seamless communication and resource sharing among compatible devices, forming a unified virtual resource pool that abstracts hardware boundaries. This architecture supports cross-device , input/output , and capability extension, allowing devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops to interconnect dynamically without traditional app . The Super Device feature, introduced in HarmonyOS 2.0 in 2021, permits users to pair multiple devices into a cohesive "super terminal" via one-click connections, treating them as extensions of a single system. For instance, a can share its screen to a tablet or PC, enabling window dragging across displays, while peripherals like keyboards and mice from one device control others. content, files, and input events synchronize in real-time, facilitating uninterrupted workflows such as editing documents initiated on a phone and continued on a larger screen. This integration reduces developer fragmentation by supporting one-time app development for multi-device deployment, where applications adapt fluidly to varying form factors and capabilities through distributed . In practice, users can extend a phone's gallery to a TV for shared viewing or use a laptop's power for phone-based tasks, enhancing efficiency in resource-constrained scenarios like . Such capabilities, verified in Huawei's ecosystem spanning smartphones, wearables, and IoT devices, promote causal productivity gains by minimizing context-switching overhead compared to isolated ecosystems.

AI Integration and Harmony Intelligence

HarmonyOS integrates primarily through its Harmony Intelligence framework, which emphasizes on-device processing via embedded variants of Huawei's large language models to enable localized AI applications. This design facilitates , allowing computations to occur directly on devices for reduced latency and data privacy, in contrast to predominantly cloud-dependent AI implementations in systems like those from or Apple that often transmit user data to remote servers. In HarmonyOS 6, launched on October 21, 2025, Harmony Intelligence powers features such as the AI Health Assistant integrated into the Xiaoyi voice assistant, supporting voice-driven medical consultations, hospital navigation, and appointment reminders without requiring constant cloud connectivity. Creative functionalities include the AI Photo Studio, which performs scene-aware intelligent editing, portrait enhancements, and automated video generation using on-device neural processing units (NPUs). These capabilities demonstrate practical utility in everyday tasks by leveraging the operating system's distributed architecture for seamless, low-power AI inference across compatible hardware. Verifiable performance gains from AI integration include up to 40% faster system responsiveness and battery life improvements of 35 to 51 minutes, attributed to AI-optimized resource scheduling that predicts and allocates power for tasks like background processing. However, these benefits are inherently limited by the constraints of Huawei's silicon, such as the NPUs in Kirin SoCs, which prioritize efficiency over the higher peak compute capacities available in unrestricted global alternatives, necessitating careful software tuning to maximize on-device AI . NearLink, Huawei's proprietary short-range wireless protocol launched in September 2023, functions as an alternative to and (UWB) by leveraging Cyclic Prefix-Orthogonal (CP-OFDM) for enhanced performance in latency-sensitive applications. In its Single-Link Enhanced (SLE) mode, it delivers data rates up to 12 Mbit/s—six times 's peak of 2 Mbit/s—while achieving bidirectional latency as low as 20 microseconds (versus 's milliseconds) and reducing power consumption by 60%. These metrics stem from Huawei's optimizations for dense, multi-device scenarios, where NearLink supports up to 10 times more concurrent connections than , prioritizing reliability over UWB's localization focus or Wi-Fi's higher but power-intensive throughput. Within HarmonyOS, NearLink underpins the Super Device paradigm by enabling sub-millisecond latencies (<1 ms) for distributed tasks like real-time audio handoff between smartphones and earbuds or multi-screen video continuity, outperforming Bluetooth's typical 10-100 ms delays in empirical device pairings. Independent tests of HarmonyOS file-sharing, powered by NearLink, demonstrate transfers of 1.2 GB files in 8 seconds, compared to 14 seconds via Apple's under analogous conditions, attributing gains to NearLink's higher effective throughput despite similar backhauls. NearLink integrates with HarmonyOS Connect to orchestrate IoT ecosystems, providing low-power, secure links for devices like sensors and appliances, where its Single-Link Basic (SLB) mode handles intermittent data bursts more efficiently than Bluetooth Low Energy in high-density setups. HarmonyOS 6, released in October 2025, extends this via unified Bluetooth-NearLink controls, introducing direct peer-to-peer file transfers to Apple iOS, iPadOS, and macOS devices over short-range wireless—bypassing cables or cloud relays for the first time and achieving compatibility through protocol bridging without ecosystem lock-in.

Software Development Ecosystem

ArkUI Framework and Development Tools

ArkUI is a declarative framework for HarmonyOS, primarily utilizing ArkTS, an extended variant (eTS), to enable developers to build responsive, multi-device applications through a component-based paradigm that emphasizes separation of UI logic from . This approach contrasts with imperative styles by allowing UIs to be defined via markup-like declarations, facilitating efficient rendering across diverse form factors such as smartphones, tablets, foldables, and wearables. ArkUI supports features like state-driven updates and modifiers for dynamic behaviors, promoting code reusability and maintainability in distributed scenarios. Introduced alongside HarmonyOS 3.0 in 2023 with declarative capabilities in eTS, ArkUI evolved from earlier JavaScript-based prototypes and received significant enhancements by HarmonyOS 6.0 developer beta in September 2025, including expanded component libraries and improved system integration for AI-driven interfaces. ArkUI-X, an open-source extension released around 2025, extends this framework for cross-platform development targeting Android, , and HarmonyOS, allowing a single codebase to deploy across ecosystems while maintaining native performance. Key development tools include DevEco Studio, Huawei's integrated development environment (IDE) launched in September 2020, which provides hot reload functionality for rapid iteration—enabling real-time UI previews without full recompilation—and debugging tools tailored for ArkTS. ArkUI Inspector, integrated in DevEco Studio, supports inspecting the UI component tree and display effects, including exporting app UI snapshots (containing UI tree structure and visual effects) for offline viewing of components and interfaces; snapshots are exported via the toolbar's right arrow icon to local files and can be imported back for analysis, providing similar functionality to direct UI tree text copying despite lacking that specific feature. ArkUI's component model supports encapsulation and reuse via identifiers for caching, optimizing performance in list-based or scrollable interfaces, while adaptive layout mechanisms handle device-specific adaptations, such as responsive grids and orientation changes on foldable screens. Developers transitioning from Android's Java or Kotlin ecosystems face a learning curve due to the shift to declarative syntax and ArkTS decorators, though the structural familiarity and Huawei's comprehensive documentation mitigate this, with many reporting quick adaptation. Huawei has incentivized adoption through a $1 billion investment in ecosystem development since 2024, alongside resources like tutorials and grants, contributing to over 8 million registered developers by mid-2025. These tools prioritize native HarmonyOS paradigms over compatibility layers, ensuring optimized distributed app behaviors like super device collaboration.

App Models: Native, Quick Apps, and Compatibility Layers

HarmonyOS supports native applications packaged as HarmonyOS Ability Packages (HAPs), which are modular ZIP archives containing one or more —self-contained components that can run independently or collaboratively across devices in a distributed manner. HAPs leverage the OS's architecture for enhanced isolation and performance, with developers using languages like ArkTS for building these apps, enabling features such as cross-device without traditional app boundaries. This native model prioritizes efficiency over legacy dependencies, allowing apps to access system-level optimizations like deterministic . In contrast, Quick Apps offer a lightweight, installation-free paradigm, functioning as web-like applications that deliver near-native performance without requiring downloads or storage allocation for full packages. Accessed via the AppGallery, shortcuts, or deep links, Quick Apps reduce development complexity with standardized APIs and automatic updates, though they trade some depth for faster deployment and lower resource use compared to full HAPs. Prior to HarmonyOS NEXT (version 5.0, released in beta form October 2024), the OS employed compatibility layers to emulate an , permitting unmodified APK installations and masking underlying AOSP code for broader app availability. These layers, while enabling short-term ecosystem continuity amid U.S. sanctions limiting services, introduced overhead from hybrid architecture, potential vulnerabilities, and non-native optimizations. With NEXT's launch, Android compatibility was fully deprecated to eliminate such dependencies, compelling developers to rebuild apps as native HAPs for seamless integration and superior runtime efficiency—evidenced by reduced latency in distributed scenarios but requiring substantial efforts. Service widgets, akin to meta-services for rapid interaction, extend app accessibility by providing glanceable previews and controls directly from the or app icons, often via swipe gestures to reveal stacked or grouped interfaces without full app invocation. These widgets support dynamic content updates and shortcut combinations, enhancing user efficiency in a multi-device environment. The native app ecosystem has grown rapidly post-NEXT, surpassing 10,000 HAP-based titles by September 2024, with targeting 100,000 by year-end 2025 to achieve comprehensive coverage of daily needs through developer incentives and partnerships.

Service Widgets and Collaboration Kits

Service widgets in HarmonyOS provide users with glanceable previews of app data and quick access to core functions, such as weather updates or music playback, directly from the home screen or compatible hosts without requiring full app launches. Introduced as a modular UI extension, these widgets support customizable styles, stacking, and grouping for organized displays, with HarmonyOS 3 enhancing layout flexibility through atomic service integration. Developers implement service widgets via the Service Widget Provider ability, which focuses on data management while the host handles JS UI rendering and updates. Huawei extended service widget support to AppGallery apps in August 2023, enabling third-party developers to embed these components for streamlined interactions across HarmonyOS smartphones. This framework reduces context-switching by embedding service logic into widget surfaces, though its efficacy hinges on app-specific implementations rather than OS-level enforcement. The Service Collaboration Kit complements widgets by offering APIs for cross-app and cross-device data sharing, predicated on shared ID . It enables distributed capabilities like real-time of inputs (e.g., camera feeds or scanning operations) between devices, using ArkTS for declarative development and C NDK for low-level interconnectivity. Launched with HarmonyOS NEXT documentation updates in 2024, the kit abstracts device discovery and session management to foster modular synergies, such as propagating widget updates across a Super Device cluster. In practice, these allow widgets to invoke collaborative services for extended functionality, like live between a phone widget and a paired tablet, minimizing redundant app invocations. Adoption remains developer-driven, with providing codelabs for integration, but empirical cross-app usage is limited to controlled demos rather than broad ecosystem metrics as of mid-2025.

Hardware Ecosystem and Compatibility

Launch Devices and Expansion

HarmonyOS debuted commercially on August 9, 2019, with deployment on the Honor Vision series of smart TVs, marking its initial focus on (IoT) hardware. Early expansion targeted additional IoT categories, including smartwatches, wireless routers, and other connected wearables, leveraging the system's distributed architecture for resource sharing across low-power devices. Smartphone integration commenced with HarmonyOS 2.0, released on June 2, 2021, which extended support to Huawei's flagship mobile lineup starting with the Mate 40 series and subsequent P series models. This shift addressed hardware constraints from U.S. export restrictions, enabling native OS operation on devices like the Mate 40, P50, and later iterations including foldables such as the Mate X series. By October 2025, HarmonyOS 6.0 public beta eligibility encompassed numerous flagship smartphones and tablets, including the Huawei Mate 70 series, Mate 60 series, Pura 70 series, Mate X6, and Mate X5. Expansion further incorporated personal computers, with Huawei's first HarmonyOS-powered PCs launching on May 19, 2025, supporting connectivity to over 1,000 peripherals. Automotive applications emerged through , the open-source variant, enabling customized implementations in vehicle head units and cockpit systems as early as 2021, with deeper integrations in smart car ecosystems by 2025. This progression broadened hardware compatibility beyond to embedded systems, prioritizing cross-device orchestration without Android dependencies in later iterations.

IoT Integration and Cross-Hardware Support

HarmonyOS leverages the kernel for low-resource IoT devices, providing a lightweight foundation optimized for sensors, wearables, and embedded systems with minimal power consumption and real-time capabilities. This heritage enables efficient operation in constrained environments, supporting modular components for connectivity, security, and data processing tailored to IoT endpoints. The operating system scales to manage vast networks of devices, with reporting installations on over one billion units as of late 2024, the majority comprising IoT terminals primarily deployed in . This includes support for heterogeneous hardware from basic sensors to industrial appliances, facilitated by a distributed that abstracts underlying differences for unified application deployment and resource sharing. In industrial applications, HarmonyOS extends to cross-hardware orchestration, as demonstrated by MineHarmony OS, a customized variant launched in September 2021 for operations. This system integrates IoT sensors, production machinery, and digital platforms over industrial networks, allowing centralized control and for equipment like drills and conveyors via a unified interface, marking the first such OS tailored for ecosystems. For consumer and smart home scenarios, HarmonyOS positions smartphones as central hubs for IoT management, enabling seamless command of appliances, lights, and devices through distributed collaboration without proprietary silos. Management tools, such as integrated cockpits in extended ecosystems, provide oversight dashboards for device status, configuration, and analytics, verifiable in deployments like Huawei's smart home kits where phones orchestrate multi-vendor hardware via standardized APIs.

Market Adoption

Domestic Success in China

In the second quarter of 2025, HarmonyOS captured a 17% share of 's mobile operating system market, exceeding iOS's 16% for the sixth consecutive quarter, according to data from Counterpoint Research. This positioned HarmonyOS as the second-largest OS in behind Android, reflecting sustained domestic momentum. Concurrently, Huawei achieved an 18% share of 's smartphone shipments in the same period, reclaiming the top position amid a 4% overall market contraction, as reported by Omdia and Canalys analyses. By October 2024, reported over 1 billion devices running HarmonyOS across smartphones, tablets, wearables, and IoT hardware, marking a rapid escalation from 900 million in June 2024. This expansion occurred despite limiting global access to advanced chips and software, underscoring resilience through localized supply chains and domestic production scaling. Key drivers included targeted subsidies from Chinese provincial governments to promote devices, extensive porting of popular apps to the HarmonyOS ecosystem—reaching over 20,000 native applications by early 2025—and a broader national emphasis on technological to mitigate foreign dependencies. These elements fostered consumer preference for HarmonyOS amid geopolitical pressures, enabling empirical growth in device activations and within .

Global Penetration and Barriers

As of Q2 2025, HarmonyOS holds approximately 4.25% of the global operating system , with adoption largely restricted to device owners in select European and Asian markets beyond . This penetration remains confined to users tolerant of alternatives to (GMS), as U.S. export restrictions since 2019 have barred from integrating GMS, forcing reliance on (HMS) and sideloaded applications. The shift to HarmonyOS NEXT, which eliminates Android app compatibility layers starting with devices launched in late , intensifies ecosystem barriers for international users by creating scarcity of native applications optimized for global needs, such as banking and streaming services tied to Western APIs. has targeted 100,000 native apps by late 2025 to address this, but developer migration remains slow outside due to fragmented incentives and the entrenched Android/iOS duopoly. Huawei executives have articulated ambitions for one-third of the global OS market through aggressive expansion, including incentives for third-party developers and cross-device integration. However, HarmonyOS s trail Android's dominant 79% worldwide share as of Q2 2025, with limited traction in premium segments reliant on Google-dependent apps. Greater verifiable success appears in wearables and IoT, where HarmonyOS's distributed architecture facilitates seamless multi-device collaboration, powering devices like smartwatches available globally and enabling features such as real-time health data syncing across ecosystems. This niche strength contrasts with challenges, as IoT deployments benefit from lower app dependency and 's hardware integration advantages.

Security and Privacy Claims

Huawei's Asserted Protections and Innovations

asserts that its architecture in HarmonyOS provides enhanced security through service isolation, minimizing the by confining essential functions to the kernel while offloading others to user space, which theoretically reduces the risk of compared to monolithic designs. This approach draws from 's heritage and incorporates hardware-based isolation via TrustZone, where sensitive operations like biometric occur in a (iTrustee), preventing unauthorized access to extracted features such as facial liveness detection. Technically, can improve and verifiability, though 's implementation relies on proprietary extensions whose formal proofs remain unpublished. In HarmonyOS 6.0, released in October 2025, introduced AI-driven anti-fraud mechanisms under the StarShield Security architecture, including real-time detection of AI-generated deepfakes such as face-swaps during video calls and automated prevention tailored for family accounts. These features leverage on-device neural processing units (NPUs) for inference, aiming to preempt social engineering attacks without cloud dependency, with claiming over 80% accuracy in fraud based on internal datasets. Additionally, the system includes anti-peek protections that blur sensitive screen data upon detecting nearby viewers via front-facing cameras. Huawei's Safety Detect API enables developers to integrate runtime checks for app integrity, identifying rooted devices, emulators, and tampering attempts through cryptographic verification and behavioral analysis, thereby asserting against malicious app modifications. Complementing this, HarmonyOS emphasizes on-device data processing for AI and privacy-sensitive tasks, which Huawei claims diminishes exposure to cloud-based leaks by localizing computation and limiting to user-consented essentials, unlike architectures requiring frequent remote synchronization. For vulnerability management, maintains a structured patch program, issuing monthly bulletins that address CVEs across kernel, framework, and layers; for instance, the June 2021 update resolved multiple high-severity issues, including out-of-bounds writes and integer overflows, with urgent over-the-air deployments for critical flaws. In early versions with Android compatibility layers, expedited fixes such as rebranding labels from "Android" to HarmonyOS in 2021 patches to enforce native identity and close inherited exposure vectors. These mechanisms underscore 's commitment to proactive remediation, though efficacy depends on device adoption rates and integrity.

Empirical Security Track Record

Huawei has documented and patched hundreds of vulnerabilities in HarmonyOS since its inception, with nearly 300 addressed in 2022 alone, including flaws affecting core components like the kernel and services. Monthly security bulletins continue this practice, such as the August 2025 update resolving 46 CVEs, comprising 5 high-severity and 41 medium-severity issues, often involving , denial of service, and memory corruption. These patches demonstrate a structured response mechanism, with vulnerabilities typically fixed via over-the-air updates rolled out to compatible devices. Publicly reported exploits exploiting HarmonyOS vulnerabilities remain limited, contrasting with the higher volume observed in Android ecosystems, where widespread malware campaigns and zero-days are more frequently disclosed. This disparity correlates with HarmonyOS's predominant deployment in , where market share exceeds hundreds of millions of devices but global adoption is curtailed by sanctions, reducing exposure to diverse threat actors and independent scrutiny. No major in-the-wild incidents akin to Android's Joker malware surges—such as the 2021 infection of over 500,000 devices via the AppGallery, though on Android-based variants—have been tied specifically to pure HarmonyOS implementations. The OS's closed-source architecture, including kernel encryption since late 2024, impedes comprehensive independent audits, fostering reliance on Huawei's internal disclosures over third-party verification. HarmonyOS Safety Detect, Huawei's app-level threat mitigation tool, faces implementation constraints, necessitating developer-managed protections for endpoints and exhibiting reduced efficacy beyond Huawei's regional strongholds due to integration dependencies. Malware incidence appears lower within China's , attributable to rigorous AppGallery curation, yet this may reflect controlled app distribution rather than inherent superiority, as open ecosystems like Android's permit broader but riskier diversity.

Controversies and Criticisms

Independence Narrative vs. Early Android Reliance

Huawei announced on August 9, 2019, positioning it as a fully independent distinct from Android, with initial deployment on Honor Vision smart TVs rather than smartphones. However, versions 1.0 through 4.0, spanning 2019 to 2023, incorporated the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) codebase and to enable compatibility with Android applications, allowing sideloading of APK files without modification. This reliance contradicted 's assertions of non-fork status, as independent analyses revealed functioning as a modified Android environment during this period, with UI overlays masking underlying AOSP components. The pivot to genuine independence occurred with HarmonyOS NEXT (version 5.0), announced in beta form on June 24, 2024, which eliminates AOSP integration entirely in favor of a native microkernel-based derived from Huawei's project. Prior iterations exhibited a gradual reduction in AOSP dependencies—evident in HarmonyOS 4.0's partial codebase trimming—but retained Android app support as a bridge, reflecting pragmatic evolution rather than wholesale reinvention from inception. Development of HarmonyOS originated in , driven by Huawei's vision for a unified OS across IoT devices, predating mobile sanctions but initially targeting non-smartphone ecosystems like wearables and smart home appliances. U.S. export restrictions imposed in May 2019, followed by the Entity List designation barring access in September 2019, compelled accelerated adaptation for smartphones, transforming an IoT-focused initiative into a broader strategy amid disruptions. This causal sequence underscores sanctions as a catalyst hastening the shift, though foundational work on predated geopolitical pressures.

National Security Allegations and Backdoor Risks

lawmakers have expressed significant concerns over HarmonyOS, alleging it poses risks due to potential backdoors enabling by the Chinese government. In May 2025, Representatives and , members of the Select Committee on the , urged the U.S. to coordinate with allies to block HarmonyOS adoption, warning that the operating system could harbor hidden vulnerabilities or backdoors exploitable for via software updates. These apprehensions stem from Huawei's close ties to the Chinese state and the opacity of HarmonyOS's codebase, which independent researchers have been unable to fully audit for malicious features. A primary causal factor underpinning these allegations is China's 2017 National Intelligence Law, which mandates that all Chinese organizations, including , "support, assist, and cooperate with national intelligence work" and safeguard related secrets. This creates a legal obligation for to provide data or access to authorities upon request, potentially including from HarmonyOS devices, without disclosure or user notification. While maintains it has never complied with such requests beyond legal requirements and denies embedding backdoors, the law's extraterritorial reach—applying to operations abroad—undermines assurances of independence from state directives. Despite these fears, no empirically confirmed backdoors or state-sponsored exploits have been publicly documented in HarmonyOS to date, with identified vulnerabilities, such as local flaws (e.g., CVE-2025-46588), appearing as standard software bugs rather than intentional mechanisms. The system's closed-source nature, however, precludes comprehensive third-party verification, contrasting with more auditable platforms like Android, where Google's telemetry practices—while extensive and privacy-invasive—are transparently disclosed and subject to regulatory oversight in democratic jurisdictions rather than compulsory intelligence cooperation. This opacity amplifies perceived risks, as potential covert channels could evade detection indefinitely. Critics of U.S. restrictions sometimes frame them as protectionist measures to shield domestic firms like from competition, yet the absence of verifiable exploits does not negate prudent risk mitigation given Huawei's state affiliations and the Law's imperatives. Empirical data on breaches remains absent, but causal realism dictates that legal mandates for assistance create incentives for preemptive compliance, justifying caution over dismissal of threats as mere .

Ecosystem Limitations and Forced Localization

With the transition to HarmonyOS NEXT, released on October 22, 2024, the operating system fully severed ties with the Android Open Source Project, eliminating support for APK files and requiring all applications to be developed natively using Huawei's ArkTS language, Ark Compiler, and DevEco Studio IDE. This architectural independence creates immediate ecosystem voids, as global developers have not yet ported a comprehensive suite of apps, leaving users without seamless access to staples like WhatsApp, which encounters functionality breakdowns such as failed predictions and intermittent operation in non-native environments. Early beta testing of HarmonyOS NEXT revealed persistent technical shortcomings, including accelerated battery drain exceeding 10-20% compared to mature platforms and unreliable notification delivery, where alerts fail to appear or arrive with substantial delays, eroding practical usability. These issues stem from the platform's nascent kernel and middleware, which prioritize over polished peripheral optimizations, compelling rushed native adaptations that often inherit suboptimal code quality from accelerated development cycles. Developer adoption faces structural barriers, as smaller firms—lacking the engineering depth of giants like —must duplicate efforts across iOS, Android, and HarmonyOS without cross-platform shortcuts, leading to deferred or abandoned ports that perpetuate app scarcity. The ecosystem's localization imperatives, enforced via mandatory integration with Huawei's AppGallery for distribution and services, further constrain global participation by tying apps to Huawei-specific APIs and regional compliance, sidelining alternatives like direct APK sideloading. This China-centric orientation, amplified by domestic regulatory incentives that favor hardware, yields a paltry global footprint of approximately 4-5% as of mid-2025, signaling to international developers a marginal return on outside subsidized local markets. Consequently, the platform's independence trades breadth for control, fostering a siloed environment where users confront fragmented functionality and devs weigh the costs of bespoke development against negligible overseas scale.

Reception and Broader Impact

Technical Achievements and Innovations

HarmonyOS introduces a architecture that enables seamless collaboration across devices, forming a unified "Super Device" ecosystem where resources like power, storage, and peripherals are shared dynamically. This approach leverages a design to minimize overhead, allowing for efficient task distribution; for instance, in HarmonyOS 6.0, task instruction transmission latency has been reduced to 20 milliseconds through heterogeneous compute . Earlier versions, such as HarmonyOS 3, achieved inter-device latency as low as 1 millisecond, with 20% improved transmission performance compared to prior methods. The Deterministic Latency Engine further optimizes app response times by 25.7%, prioritizing real-time tasks in multi-device scenarios. A key innovation is NearLink, Huawei's proprietary short-range wireless protocol integrated into HarmonyOS, which outperforms and in efficiency metrics. NearLink delivers up to six times the data transmission speed of , with latency reduced to one-thirtieth and power consumption lowered by 60%, enabling more reliable connections for IoT and wearable devices. Transmission rates exceed 900 Mbps, surpassing 5.3's 50 Mbps and approaching capabilities while combining low-power attributes. This protocol supports ten times more simultaneous connections, enhancing resilience in dense device environments without standard protocol dependencies. HarmonyOS's architecture provides advantages in device integration over Android by avoiding fragmentation through a unified kernel and native cross-device APIs, fostering tighter cohesion. Unlike Android's varied implementations across manufacturers, HarmonyOS enforces consistent distributed soft bus communication, reducing compatibility issues and enabling fluid resource pooling—such as using a smartphone's NPU for tablet AI tasks. This self-reliant stack, fully divested from Android code in HarmonyOS NEXT, has powered Huawei's deployment of home-grown systems on laptops and smartphones since May 2025, demonstrating viability without U.S. dependencies amid sanctions. The result is enhanced performance in constrained environments, spurring innovations like AI-native processing across over 900 million devices reported by Huawei.

Economic and Geopolitical Ramifications

HarmonyOS has significantly contributed to Huawei's economic recovery in the Chinese market following U.S. sanctions imposed in 2019, which restricted access to services and advanced semiconductors. By developing an independent operating system, Huawei achieved a 18% share of 's smartphone shipments in Q2 2025, reclaiming the top position for the first time in four years and surpassing competitors like Vivo and . This resurgence is evidenced by Huawei's annual revenue exceeding $118 billion in 2024, demonstrating resilience against export controls that aimed to curb its growth. In , where 71% of Huawei's revenues originate as of 2025, HarmonyOS devices have driven domestic sales, with the OS capturing 17% of the smartphone market in Q2 2025, ahead of at 16%. Geopolitically, HarmonyOS exemplifies 's push for technological self-sufficiency amid escalating U.S.- tensions, accelerating the bifurcation of global tech standards. The OS's adoption, reaching 19% market share in by mid-2025 and surpassing for six consecutive quarters, underscores a viable alternative to Android and dominance, challenging assumptions of inherent Chinese technological inferiority propagated in some Western analyses. Launches like the Mate 70 series in late 2024, fully reliant on HarmonyOS, have highlighted the hastening of tech decoupling, as adapts to sanctions by fostering indigenous ecosystems rather than capitulating to restrictions. This shift reduces U.S. leverage in supply chains, with HarmonyOS enabling applications beyond consumer devices, such as microsatellites, to circumvent dependencies. While spurring and —evidenced by over 15,000 native apps by Q3 2024—the rise of HarmonyOS risks entrenching siloed standards, potentially fragmenting global and increasing costs for developers and users across divided markets. Huawei's China-centric dominance, with limited international penetration due to ongoing scrutiny, amplifies these concerns, as bifurcated ecosystems may hinder traditionally provided by unified platforms like Android. Empirical data from China's OS landscape, where Android's share has declined to around 64-66% amid HarmonyOS growth, illustrates this dual-edged dynamic of enhanced rivalry and prospective isolation.

Future Trajectory: HarmonyOS 6 and Long-Term Viability

Huawei released the public beta of HarmonyOS 6 on October 22, 2025, initially for flagship devices such as the Mate 70 series, Mate 60 series, and Mate X6 series sold in , with broader rollout planned subsequently. The update emphasizes AI-driven enhancements, including smarter device interconnections via an upgraded Star Connection architecture, responsive animations, dynamic light-sensing for adaptive visuals, and improved privacy features, building on the foundation of HarmonyOS NEXT without Android compatibility layers. A PC variant of HarmonyOS 6 is slated for imminent launch, extending the OS to laptops and potentially challenging Windows dominance in 's ecosystem through native multi-device integration. Huawei has targeted ecosystem parity with Android and by the end of 2025, supported by investments exceeding $1 billion in native app development and a goal of 100,000 HarmonyOS apps within 12 months from late 2024 announcements. While HarmonyOS 5 achieved approximately 17 million installations by September 2025 with projections to reach 30 million by year-end, primarily in where it surpassed for multiple quarters, global install base growth remains constrained by the need for developers to rebuild apps from scratch rather than porting Android versions. Long-term viability in appears robust, driven by domestic market dominance—reaching 19% smartphone share in Q4 2024—and state-backed incentives for technological sovereignty amid U.S. sanctions that limit access to foreign chips and software. Internationally, expansion plans for 2026 hinge on overcoming app ecosystem immaturity and persistent export restrictions, with analysts noting developer hesitation due to the resource demands of maintaining parallel platforms alongside and Android. Key risks include potential developer exodus if HarmonyOS fails to deliver competitive performance or incentives, exacerbating fragmentation in a market where Android holds over 70% global share; conversely, opportunities lie in IoT and AI sovereignty, where the OS's distributed enables real-time multi-device without reliance on Western stacks. Without easing of sanctions, global traction may plateau as a niche alternative, while China's insulated ecosystem could solidify HarmonyOS as a parallel standard.

References

  1. https://consumer.huawei.com/en/harmonyos/
  2. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/apiref/doc-guides/harmonyos-overview-0000000000011903
  3. https://www.thinkchina.sg/technology/can-huaweis-harmonyos-next-rival-operating-systems-ios-and-android
  4. https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/02/harmonyos-hands-on-huaweis-android-killer-is-just-android/
  5. https://www.huawei.com/en/news/2021/6/huawei-launches-products-powered-by-harmonyos-2
  6. https://medium.com/huawei-developers/what-is-harmonyos-how-it-differs-from-android-e5ea3fc50acc
  7. https://www.gizmochina.com/2024/10/27/how-harmonyos-next-is-different-from-android/
  8. https://www.bjreview.com/China/201908/t20190816_800176044.html
  9. https://consumer.huawei.com/ph/community/details/Here-s-the-meaning-of-HarmonyOS-logo-boot-animation-the-big-O-and-blue-horizontal-line/topicId-132521/
  10. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/09/huawei-launches-its-own-operating-system-hongmengos-or-harmonyos.html
  11. https://www.gizchina.com/huawei/yu-chengdong-explains-why-huaweis-os-is-called-harmony-os
  12. https://www.huaweicentral.com/psa-harmonyos-is-the-english-name-of-hongmeng-os/
  13. https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3133362/huawei-hits-stumbling-block-harmonyos-roll-out-after-chinese-court
  14. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-hongmeng-trademark-got-rejected-really-check-the-full-story-and-whats-next/
  15. https://medium.com/snapp-mobile/harmony-os-harmony-next-openharmony-and-oniro-explained-61389636c00e
  16. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202510/1346286.shtml
  17. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-reveals-harmonyos-6-ui-upgrades-ahead-of-its-release/
  18. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-harmonyos-6-0-public-beta-rollout-time-and-devices/
  19. https://www.huawei.com/de/facts/voices-of-huawei/ren_zhengfeis_interview_with_sky_news
  20. https://www.huawei.com/en/huaweitech/publication/81/shape-the-cloud
  21. https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R47012
  22. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/25/huawei-founder-urges-shift-to-software-to-counter-us-sanctions.html
  23. https://www.digitimes.com/news/a20230926PD204/huawei-operating-system-euleros-harmonyos.html
  24. https://telecomlead.com/broadband/why-harmony-os-holds-strategic-significance-for-huawei-119143
  25. https://asiatimes.com/2019/07/huawei-ensures-cyber-security-with-a-huge-transformation/
  26. https://en.eeworld.com.cn/mp/leiphone/a73847.jspx
  27. https://www.huawei.com/en/huaweitech/publication/84/lite-os-smart-iot
  28. https://www.huawei.com/en/news/2016/4/wuda-iot-jiejue-fangan
  29. https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/08/huawei-announces-its-first-operating-system-harmonyos/
  30. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-49291481
  31. https://www.forbes.com/sites/bensin/2019/08/12/hands-on-with-honor-vision-running-huaweis-harmony-os/
  32. https://www.notebookcheck.net/Huawei-launches-Harmony-OS.428933.0.html
  33. https://handwiki.org/wiki/Software:HarmonyOS_version_history
  34. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-hongmeng-os-everything-you-need-to-know/
  35. https://www.gsmarena.com/harmonyos_20_will_allegedly_be_available_on_the_mate_40_phones_first_then_p40_and_mate_30-news-45634.php
  36. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-harmonyos-upgrade-plan-devices-and-rollout-time-list-3/
  37. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-next-is-more-than-just-eliminating-the-android-asop-code/
  38. https://www.androidpolice.com/huawei-harmonyos-next-public-beta-china/
  39. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/huawei-reaches-900-million-active-041604382.html
  40. https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/06/china-huawei-revenue-surges-despite-us-sanctions.html
  41. https://betawiki.net/wiki/HarmonyOS_5.x
  42. https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3283429/huawei-releases-harmonyos-50-beta-it-pushes-adoption-its-android-alternative
  43. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-5-0-1-130-brings-new-features-for-huawei-mate-70-foldable-pc-and-more/
  44. https://www.harmony-developers.com/p/huawei-commits-to-harmonyos-next
  45. https://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202509/24/WS68d349e9a3108622abca2894.html
  46. https://x.com/HCNewsroom/status/1971152075078938816
  47. https://www.gsmarena.com/harmonyos_6_public_beta_released_here_are_all_the_devices_getting_it-news-70016.php
  48. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzpXObhArco
  49. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-6-0-public-beta-launched-smarter-and-safer-than-ever/
  50. https://www.usenix.org/system/files/osdi24-chen-haibo.pdf
  51. https://consumer.huawei.com/ae-en/community/details/HarmonyOS-HongMeng-OS-Everything-you-need-to-know/topicId-108870/
  52. https://soyacincau.com/2019/09/15/how-does-harmony-os-work-huawei-explanation-clement-huang-hongmeng-ark-compiler/
  53. https://www.androidauthority.com/harmony-os-next-android-alternative-3503954/
  54. https://9to5google.com/2021/05/25/huawei-harmonyos-reveal-date/
  55. https://9to5google.com/2023/11/13/huawei-harmonyos-next-android/
  56. https://news.itsfoss.com/huawei-harmonyos-linux-kernel/
  57. https://www.androidheadlines.com/2024/11/huawei-aims-to-reach-100000-harmonyos-next-apps-in-2025.html
  58. https://www.gsmarena.com/harmonyos_next_wont_have_android_app_support-news-60561.php
  59. https://www.huawei.com/en/open-source
  60. https://docs.openharmony.cn/pages/v5.1/en/OpenHarmony-Overview.md
  61. https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2024/06/29/2003820035
  62. https://www.openeuler.org/en/faq/
  63. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-and-openeuler-has-shared-operating-system-kernel-huawei/
  64. https://docs.openeuler.org/en/docs/22.03_LTS/docs/Releasenotes/key-features.html
  65. https://www.huawei.com/en/news/2020/3/openeuler-lts-open-source-operating-system
  66. https://promon.io/security-news/harmonyos-next
  67. https://www.huaweicentral.com/here-are-the-top-huawei-harmonyos-2-features/
  68. https://www.fonearena.com/blog/467247/huawei-harmonyos-6-features.html
  69. https://www.notebookcheck.net/These-Huawei-devices-are-getting-HarmonyOS-6.1146842.0.html
  70. https://phandroid.com/2021/06/02/harmonyos-jumps-ahead-of-android-with-innovative-super-devices-and-task-sharing-features/
  71. https://www.digitaltrends.com/phones/i-tried-harmonyos/
  72. https://www.opensourceforu.com/2022/07/harmonyos-helping-devices-collaborate-with-each-other/
  73. https://medium.com/huawei-developers/harmonyos-4bfe31c99be7
  74. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/apiref/doc-guides/harmonyos-features-0000000000011907
  75. https://consumer.huawei.com/en/community/details/HarmonyOS-2-0-and-EMUI-12-Features-Super-Device-and-Device/topicId_171148/
  76. https://kitemetric.com/blogs/journey-of-harmonyos-next-a-deep-dive-into-harmonyos-part-1
  77. https://www.wedowebapps.com/how-harmonyos-next-impacting-android-apple-app-development/
  78. https://livinginharmony.substack.com/p/what-is-18n-and-super-devices
  79. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-features/
  80. https://www.huawei.com/en/news/2024/9/hc-intelligent-era-xu
  81. https://www.androidheadlines.com/2025/10/harmonyos-6-is-here-faster-smarter-and-packed-with-ai.html
  82. https://www.gizmochina.com/2025/10/22/huawei-launches-harmonyos-6-every-new-feature-all-eligible-devices/
  83. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-6-offers-40-faster-performance-over-previous-versions/
  84. https://newatlas.com/mobile-technology/nearlink-wireless-huawei/
  85. https://tomorrowdesk.com/evolution/nearlink
  86. https://www.patreon.com/posts/what-is-huawei-94919667
  87. https://www.cdebyte.com/news/820
  88. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-next-file-sharing-speed-is-faster-than-apple-ios/
  89. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides/nearlink-kit-guide
  90. https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3329962/huaweis-harmonyos-6-system-supports-direct-file-transfers-apple-devices-first-time
  91. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-6-devices-can-share-files-with-apple-ios-ipados-macos/
  92. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/apiref/arkui-overview-0000001281480754
  93. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides/arkui-overview
  94. https://www.harmony-developers.com/p/arkui-x-to-build-a-cross-platform
  95. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides/ide-hot-reload
  96. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides-V5/ide-arkui-inspector-V5
  97. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/best-practices/bpta-component-reuse
  98. https://dev.to/xhunmon/harmonyos-learning-multi-device-adaptation-for-phones-ipads-pcs-and-foldables-3dfg
  99. https://forums.developer.huawei.com/forumPortal/en/topic/0203190278113195071
  100. https://www.harmony-developers.com/p/huawei-puts-1-billion-on-the-table
  101. https://www.caixinglobal.com/2025-06-21/huaweis-harmonyos-hits-8-million-developers-as-it-seeks-ecosystem-independence-102332934.html
  102. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-harmonyos-6-0-0-20-developer-beta-is-out-with-new-improvements/
  103. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides/application-dev-guide
  104. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/huawei-quickApp/
  105. https://www.yicaiglobal.com/news/huaweis-harmonyos-next-is-not-compatible-with-android
  106. https://appinchina.co/the-complete-guide-to-harmonyos-next/
  107. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-3-stack-and-group-widgets/
  108. https://9to5google.com/2024/09/23/huawei-harmony-os-next-apps/
  109. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-aims-100000-native-harmonyos-apps-in-2025-rotating-chairman/
  110. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/apiref/ability-service-widget-provider-intro-0000001150722105
  111. https://www.huaweicentral.com/appgallery-launches-service-widgets-for-huawei-harmonyos-phones/
  112. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/doc/harmonyos-guides/service-collaboration-kit-guide
  113. https://developer.huawei.com/consumer/en/codelabsPortal/carddetails/tutorials_NEXT-CollaborationServiceDemo_en
  114. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202410/1321670.shtml
  115. https://english.news.cn/20250508/e104dce64cc84243a7ee853db75ebfcf/c.html
  116. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-launched-harmonyos-next/
  117. https://news.cgtn.com/news/2025-05-08/Huawei-to-launch-first-HarmonyOS-powered-PCs-on-May-19-1DcYLqnlOlq/p.html
  118. https://www.harmony-developers.com/p/based-on-the-open-source-hongmeng
  119. https://www.reuters.com/technology/huaweis-harmony-aims-end-chinas-reliance-windows-android-2024-06-27/
  120. https://www.harmonyos.com/en/
  121. https://github.com/openharmony/kernel_liteos_a
  122. https://www.lightreading.com/smartphones-devices/huawei-s-harmony-os-has-its-work-cut-out
  123. https://www.huaweicentral.com/mine-harmonyos-operating-system-launched-by-huawei-first-in-the-industry/
  124. https://e.huawei.com/tr/industries/mining/mine-ict-technology-enablement/harmony-os
  125. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/
  126. https://www.mobileworldlive.com/huawei/upgraded-huawei-os-supports-file-sharing-with-apple-devices/
  127. https://omdia.tech.informa.com/pr/2025/jul/huawei-reclaims-throne-as-chinas-smartphone-market-dips-4percent-in-q2-2025
  128. https://seekingalpha.com/news/4473110-apple-takes-5th-place-huawei-races-to-top-spot-in-china-smartphone-market-in-q2-canalys
  129. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-is-now-running-1-billion-devices/
  130. https://fortune.com/asia/2024/06/21/almost-one-billion-huawei-devices-in-use-apple-market-share-china-us-sanctions-harmonyos/
  131. https://asia.nikkei.com/opinion/why-has-huawei-s-harmonyos-struggled-to-adopt-smaller-apps
  132. https://www.harmony-developers.com/p/harmonyos-next-applications-has-reached
  133. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202406/1314272.shtml
  134. https://www.reddit.com/r/Huawei/comments/1ga6qh1/why_i_dont_believe_in_harmonyos_next_global/
  135. https://www.reuters.com/technology/chinas-huawei-aims-100000-apps-harmony-os-6-12-months-2024-11-23/
  136. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-aims-to-achieve-one-third-of-the-global-market-share-huawei/
  137. https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/global-smartphone-os-market-share
  138. https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-harmonyos-continues-to-top-ios-for-6th-quarter-in-china/
  139. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/harmonyos-huaweis-ambitious-operating-system-future-surenthiran-fscwf
  140. https://consumer.huawei.com/content/dam/huawei-cbg-site/common/mkt/privacy/overview-new/downen/harmonyos-2-security-technical-white-paper-v2.0.pdf
  141. https://consumer.huawei.com/ae-en/community/details/topicId-108910/
  142. https://news.futunn.com/en/post/63625709/huawei-officially-launched-harmonyos-6-with-the-number-of-harmonyos
  143. https://securityboulevard.com/2024/07/limitations-of-huawei-harmonyos-safety-detect-what-you-need-to-know/
  144. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/security/update/security-bulletins-202106-0000001165332025
  145. https://www.clouddefense.ai/cve/2021/CVE-2021-22423
  146. https://consumer.huawei.com/en/support/bulletin/
  147. https://device.harmonyos.com/en/docs/security/update/security-bulletins-overview-0000001155006471
  148. https://www.securityweek.com/nearly-300-vulnerabilities-patched-huaweis-harmonyos-2022/
  149. https://dataconomy.com/2025/08/06/huawei-details-august-emui-patch-fixing-46-cves/
  150. https://www.cvedetails.com/product/80962/Huawei-Harmonyos.html?vendor_id=5979
  151. https://app.opencve.io/cve/?product=harmonyos&vendor=huawei
  152. https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/joker-malware-infects-over-500-000-huawei-android-devices/
  153. https://approov.io/blog/the-limitations-of-huawei-harmonyos-safety-detect
  154. https://technode.com/2024/01/19/huawei-launches-harmonyos-next-with-ambitious-plans-to-break-away-from-android/
  155. https://technode.com/2024/06/24/huawei-unveils-harmonyos-next-beta-version-for-developers-breaking-away-from-android-dependency/
  156. https://www.bastillepost.com/global/article/4298272-huawei-harmonyos-breaks-tech-blockade-imposed-by-us-sanctions
  157. https://asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/huawei-crackdown/block-huawei-s-harmonyos-together-with-us-allies-lawmakers-urge
  158. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-huawei-threat-us-national-security
  159. https://www.chinalawtranslate.com/en/national-intelligence-law-of-the-p-r-c-2017/
  160. https://2017-2021.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/5G-Myth_Fact3-508.pdf
  161. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/05/huawei-would-have-to-give-data-to-china-government-if-asked-experts.html
  162. https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/da-20-690a1.pdf
  163. https://radar.offseq.com/threat/cve-2025-46588-cwe-199-information-management-errors-in-huawei-harmonyos-bda914
  164. https://www.thehackacademy.com/feature/is-your-phone-the-next-target-the-rise-of-chinas-harmonyos-and-the-global-security-stakes/
  165. https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2025/01/managing-the-risks-of-chinas-access-to-us-data-and-control-of-software-and-connected-technology?lang=en
  166. http://selectcommitteeontheccp.house.gov/media/press-releases/moolenaar-krishnamoorthi-urge-action-block-ccp-controlled-operating-system
  167. https://www.b4x.com/android/forum/threads/harmonyos-5-0-has-been-officially-released.163743/
  168. https://www.reddit.com/r/Huawei/comments/1myo1fa/harmonyos_next_whatsapp/
  169. https://www.forbes.com/sites/viviantoh/2025/07/22/when-empires-collide-the-strain-of-building-harmonyos/
  170. https://www.reddit.com/r/Huawei/comments/1kzz23l/appgallery_says_all_these_apps_will_get_hmos_next/
  171. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-harmony-os-disrupting-mobile-landscape-what-startups-should-yr4xf
  172. https://dev.to/moyantianwang/harmonyos-60-new-technologies-and-features-4had
  173. https://technode.com/2022/07/28/harmony-os-3-is-huaweis-latest-move-in-the-building-of-a-walled-garden-ecosystem-to-rival-apples/
  174. https://www.knowyourmobile.com/phones/operating-systems/what-is-harmonyos/
  175. https://consumer.huawei.com/za/community/details/topicId-276306/
  176. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/huawei-launches-first-laptops-using-home-grown-harmony-operating-system-2025-05-19/
  177. https://ai-pro.org/learn-ai/articles/huawei-harmony-os-revolution
  178. https://www.techinasia.com/news/huawei-tops-chinas-smartphone-market-for-first-time-in-four-years
  179. https://fortune.com/asia/2025/02/07/huawei-revenue-118-billion-analysts-company-survive-us-sanctions/
  180. https://www.telecoms.com/mobile-devices/chinese-smartphone-recovery-boosts-huawei-annual-revenues-but-hits-margins
  181. https://voice.lapaas.com/harmonyos-beats-ios-china-q2-2025/
  182. https://www.facebook.com/PDChinaBusiness/posts/chinas-self-developed-harmonyos-one-of-the-worlds-top-three-mobile-operating-sys/1155385386707133/
  183. https://www.digitalexperience.live/huawei-mate-70-launches-harmonyos
  184. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3314994/spurred-us-sanctions-china-adapts-huaweis-harmonyos-microsatellites
  185. https://www.gizmochina.com/2024/11/04/huawei-harmonyos-reached-15-market-share-in-q3-2024/
  186. https://www.ainvest.com/news/huawei-harmonyos-laptops-geopolitical-play-tech-independence-2505/
  187. https://www.huaweicentral.com/pc-based-harmonyos-6-0-software-version-will-launch-soon-huawei/
  188. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-will-level-up-against-ios-and-android-by-2025/
  189. https://says.com/my/tech/huawei-harmony-os-target
  190. https://www.huaweicentral.com/harmonyos-5-0-installation-could-hit-30-million-devices-by-2025/
  191. https://www.procurri.com/de/knowledge-hub/global-os-market-share-2025-key-stats-trends-and-insights-for-mobile-and-desktop/
  192. https://techwireasia.com/2025/05/huaweis-first-harmonyos-laptop-marks-a-bold-break-from-android-compatibility/
  193. https://www.digitimes.com/news/a20241111PD218/harmonyos-huawei-android-expansion.html
  194. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/huawei-connect-2025-building-ai-infrastructure-in-a-sanctioned-world/
Add your contribution
Related Hubs
User Avatar
No comments yet.