Huawei releases world's slimmest tri-fold smartphone featuring Kirin 9050 Pro chip

SHENZHEN, CHINA: Huawei has officially launched the HUAWEI Mate XT 2 | ULTIMATE DESIGN, a tri-fold smartphone that stands as the industry's slimmest and largest foldable mobile device. 

Released on September 7, the handset is the first smartphone to operate on HarmonyOS 7 and features Huawei's Kirin 9050 Pro processor, marking the official commercial deployment of the company's LogicFolding semiconductor technology.

When fully unfolded, the device measures 3.5 millimetres in thickness and transforms from a mobile phone into a tablet. It features a 6.5-inch cover display that increases the screen-to-body ratio from 86.4% to 92.8%, alongside a 70% improvement in anti-reflection capabilities. The 10.2-inch main display incorporates a Smart Shield Privacy Screen using two independent pixel sets at a micro-pitch of 9 micrometres, enabling users to narrow the viewing angle in public environments without reducing clarity or resolution.

At the heart of the device is the Kirin 9050 Pro processor, developed by Huawei's HiSilicon division. Created to address the physical limits of geometric scaling in traditional semiconductor manufacturing, the chip uses 3D integration to stack active transistors vertically. This increases transistor density from approximately 155 million to 238 million transistors per square millimetre, an advancement equivalent to three years of standard geometric shrinking. The architecture is based on the τ (Tau) Scaling Law introduced earlier this year by HiSilicon President He Tingbo, who was recently named one of the world's leading artificial intelligence innovators by TIME magazine.

To resolve thermal management challenges associated with 3D transistor stacking, Huawei focused on reducing the power required to move data across the chip. As detailed by He Tingbo in her article ‘Huawei's τ Chip Was Supposed to Melt?’, reducing the physical distance between components lowers total energy consumption. As a result, LogicFolding processors operate at lower temperatures per unit of work despite the higher transistor density.

The handset operates on HarmonyOS 7, which delivers a 42% performance increase over the previous generation. Taking advantage of the tri-fold form factor, the device is also the first smartphone to include medical-grade ECG analysis. Users can hold the side edges with both hands while the device is unfolded to capture a 30-second electrocardiogram signal, which pairs with certified analysis software to generate detailed reports identifying sinus rhythm, atrial fibrillation and premature beats.

Huawei attributes these technical advancements to its ongoing research and development commitments. Over 100,000 employees, representing more than half of the company's total workforce, work in R&D, supporting a global portfolio of 160,000 active patents. In the first half of 2026, Huawei invested over RMB 121 billion in R&D, equal to 25.94% of its total revenue and up 25.2% year on year.

Pricing for the HUAWEI Mate XT 2 | ULTIMATE DESIGN starts at RMB 19,999, including a stylus set, following its official commercial release on September 12.