Nubia NaviX Ultra: World's First AI Agent Phone Unveiled at WAIC 2026

Nubia NaviX Ultra Unveiled: World’s First AI Agent Phone Runs on Doubao Assistant

Nubia, the smartphone sub-brand of ZTE, has officially unveiled the NaviX Ultra, a new smartphone the company is marketing as the world’s first AI agent phone. The device was revealed ahead of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026, taking place in Shanghai from July 17 to July 20.

Nubia teased the phone last week and has now shared its official design, color options, and core AI features through posts on Weibo. However, the company has not yet released the phone’s full specifications, pricing, or availability details, which are expected to follow in the coming days at WAIC 2026.

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An AI Agent Phone, Not Just an AI-Powered Phone

Nubia is positioning the NaviX Ultra as a smartphone built around AI agent capabilities rather than a regular device with AI features layered on top. The phone runs Doubao, ByteDance’s AI assistant, which has previously been used on Nubia’s earlier AI-focused model, the Nubia M153.

Instead of a traditional home screen filled with app icons, the NaviX Ultra is reportedly designed around the Doubao assistant as its primary interface. Users can speak a task, such as booking a table or ordering a cab, and the AI agent is expected to handle the necessary steps on its own rather than requiring users to open separate apps.

To support this AI-first approach, the phone includes a dedicated AI button on its metal frame, alongside the standard power and volume buttons, offering quick access to the assistant.

Ni Fei, president of ZTE’s Nubia division, has also stated that Nubia was the first company to complete official filing for a large language model built specifically for AI agents, reinforcing the brand’s push into agent-based smartphone software.

Design and Color Options

The Nubia NaviX Ultra features a triple rear camera setup housed in a wide, Pixel-style camera bar, with an elongated LED flash positioned below it. The front of the device has a centrally placed punch-hole camera cutout and notably narrow display bezels.

The smartphone will be available in four color options:

Blue Horizon
Black
Dreamscape
White

SAIL Award Recognition

Ahead of its official unveiling, the Nubia NaviX Ultra received the 2026 SAIL Award (Super AI Leader Award) at WAIC 2026, recognizing it as an outstanding AI-driven consumer product.

Specifications, Pricing, and Release Date: Still Unconfirmed

Nubia has not yet disclosed key hardware details for the NaviX Ultra, including its display size, processor, RAM and storage options, camera sensors, battery capacity, charging speed, or software update policy. It is also unclear whether the phone runs on Android and supports conventional Android apps alongside its AI agent interface.

The company is expected to reveal these details, along with pricing and launch markets, during WAIC 2026. Nubia is not alone in this race — rival Chinese brands, including the StepX Neo, are also positioning their devices as early AI agent smartphones, making the “first AI agent phone” title a contested claim within the industry.