94Ha ViewpointApple Inc. saw iPhone sales fall last year as it lost market share to Chinese rivals, reflecting the impact of Apple Intelligence’s failure to enter the company’s largest market outside the United States.
The iPhone’s market share slipped one percentage point to 18% in 2024, according to Counterpoint Research. Its main rival, Samsung Electronics, also lost ground to faster-growing Chinese Android device makers led by Xiaomi and Vivo. Apple’s full-year sales fell 2%, while the overall global market grew 4% over the same period, according to the research report.
Apple has been playing catch-up in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), launching a series of AI features in stages after the launch of the iPhone 16 in September. But none of these AI features are available in China, the world’s largest smartphone market, and the company is still struggling to find local partners that can help provide features such as AI writing assistance and image generation.
“The iPhone 16 series has received mixed reactions, partly because Apple Intelligence was not in place at the time of launch,” said Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint. “However, Apple continues to grow strongly in non-core markets such as Latin America.”
Counterpoint found that Lenovo Group’s Motorola, Shenzhen-based Huawei and Honor were the fastest-growing brands in the top 10. Chinese smartphone makers are all developing their own in-house AI tools and agents, including services that can perform tasks on behalf of users.
