Huawei Unveils Mate 90 with New 'LogicFolding' Chip to Counter US Curbs

Huawei Technologies on Thursday unveiled its Mate 90 smartphone line, debuting a new in-house chip design intended to sustain its performance in the premium market despite U.S. restrictions on advanced semiconductor technology.

The launch tests the company's ability to innovate around U.S. curbs that limit its access to cutting-edge chipmaking tools, forcing it to find alternative methods for boosting processor capabilities.

Homegrown Chip Innovation

Premium models in the Mate 90 series, which succeeds the Mate 80 line from November 2025, are powered by Huawei’s new Kirin 9050 Pro system-on-chip. The processor is built using a technique Huawei calls "LogicFolding," which restructures the chip's internal wiring into a three-dimensional layout for denser and faster processing.

This approach is a response to ongoing supply constraints. Richard Yu, Huawei's consumer business chief, told reporters Tuesday that China's advanced chipmaking capacity remains "very limited" and still relies on deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines, a generation behind the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology used for the most advanced chips. While Huawei did not name its manufacturing partner, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) is widely believed to produce its Kirin processors.

The new phones will run on Huawei's proprietary HarmonyOS 7, which the company says now supports over 450,000 applications and services.

Market Performance and Pricing Pressure

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Despite a challenging market, Huawei is gaining ground domestically. According to research firm IDC, Huawei's shipments in China rose 13% year-on-year between January and August, while the country's overall smartphone market contracted by 7%.

However, the company faces significant cost pressures. Yu noted that rising memory prices have added an average of $200 to the cost of each handset. This is reflected in market data from IDC, which showed the average selling price of smartphones in China climbed 11.3% in the second quarter to $543, while the average price for a Huawei device declined 14.7% to $628 during the same period.

Competition in the Premium Segment

Huawei's launch comes as competition intensifies, particularly with Apple entering the foldable phone category with its iPhone Duo last month. Yu welcomed Apple's entry, stating that Huawei holds approximately a 75% share of China's foldable market.

He claimed that sales of Huawei's Pura X Max foldable phone, which is similar in form factor to Apple's new device, jumped 76% week-on-week immediately following the iPhone Duo's announcement. According to Counterpoint Research, Apple is projected to ship 6 million iPhone Duo units in 2026, with China expected to account for nearly a quarter of that total.