Meizu Technology is quitting the smartphone business. The company, owned by car maker Geely, said AI is the future and will invest “All in AI”.
According to a post on Weibo, the FlymeOS team will be restructured into working on new AI terminal devices that will use globally available LLM (large language model) such as Open AI.
Meizu already laid the cornerstones of its multi-terminal experience when it announced Flyme Auto – an infotainment system for Geely-made vehicles, including Polestar and Lotus, which connects seamlessly with FlymeOS 10 devices, such as the Meizu 20 and Meizu 21 flagships.
According to Shen Ziyu, Chairman and CEO of Xingji Meizu Group, smartphone users take longer to upgrade – an average of 51 months, which is more than 4 years. The added companies now offer comparable performance in smoothness, photography, and software features. That’s why there will be no Meizu 21 Pro, Meizu 22 and Meizu 23 series.
A new mobile OS tailored for the AI era will be launched in 2024, and the first AI-enabled hardware product will also be released later this year. Support for current smartphones will remain, including access to offline stores in China. There was no word on support for overseas devices as the company has been absent from the international scene for the past few years.
