In a significant move toward redefining its software ecosystem, Huawei unveiled the developer beta of HarmonyOS 6 on June 20, 2025, at the Huawei Developer Conference (HDC 2025). As the sixth iteration of the company’s in-house operating system, HarmonyOS 6 represents more than just an update—it’s a bold leap into a future powered by artificial intelligence, seamless cross-device integration, and enhanced user privacy.
Currently available only for developers, this beta release lays the groundwork for a commercial launch anticipated in the latter half of 2025. When fully rolled out, HarmonyOS 6 is expected to transform how Huawei devices—ranging from smartphones and tablets to smart cars and IoT systems—interact within a unified ecosystem.
1. Harmony Agent Framework (HMAF): Core of AI Innovation
The most groundbreaking component of HarmonyOS 6 is the Harmony Agent Framework (HMAF). This intelligent framework introduces a network of AI agents capable of understanding complex user tasks, cooperating across applications, and even predicting needs before they arise.
Trained on an extensive dataset of over 20 trillion tokens, HMAF empowers the operating system with advanced capabilities such as natural language processing, contextual awareness, and multi-agent collaboration. Users can now delegate sophisticated tasks—like summarizing documents, scheduling events, or controlling smart home devices—using a single voice prompt or text input.
HMAF signals Huawei’s strategic push into the AI-first computing paradigm, where software doesn’t just execute commands but actively participates in decision-making and task automation.
2. AI Assistants Reinvented: XiaoYi and Celia Evolve
HarmonyOS 6 debuts an all-new intelligent assistant named XiaoYi, designed to be a more proactive and contextual digital companion. Unlike traditional voice assistants that wait for prompts, XiaoYi observes user behavior, analyzes on-screen content, and offers real-time suggestions. For instance, if you’re reading a news article, XiaoYi might recommend related podcasts or summarize key points from accompanying documents.
XiaoYi works seamlessly with apps like Excel (via an AI layer called ChatExcel), allowing users to query spreadsheet data conversationally. It can also integrate with content platforms and recommend personalized material based on historical interactions.
Alongside XiaoYi, Huawei’s older assistant Celia also gets a major upgrade. The enhanced version introduces an “Intelligent Body” feature that proactively suggests actions based on long-press gestures, app usage habits, and daily routines—making the user experience more dynamic and personalized.
3. DevEco CodeGenie: Empowering Developers with AI
To support its growing developer community, Huawei has introduced DevEco CodeGenie, an AI-powered development assistant integrated into the HarmonyOS IDE.
CodeGenie helps developers generate code snippets, debug syntax errors, and accelerate app development workflows. According to Huawei, this tool can resolve up to 70% of syntax-related issues and produce functional code in nearly 40% of tested scenarios.
This AI assistant is a significant productivity boost, especially for new developers or teams building cross-device apps. With HarmonyOS emphasizing one-code deployment for phones, tablets, and cars, CodeGenie ensures that developing native apps becomes more accessible and scalable.
4. Cross-Device Sharing: Touch and Share Gets Smarter
One of HarmonyOS’s standout features has always been its ability to unify various devices under a single operating environment. With HarmonyOS 6, the Touch and Share feature becomes faster and more intuitive. Users can now transfer files between smartphones, tablets, and PCs with a single tap—achieving near-instantaneous results thanks to ultra-low latency.
Even group sharing has been streamlined, allowing a user to send a file to multiple devices simultaneously. Whether it’s sending a document to a PC, a presentation to a tablet, or music to a smart speaker, the OS intelligently identifies nearby devices and initiates transfer with minimal user input.
This seamless continuity will be especially valuable in enterprise, educational, and creative professional environments.
5. Smart Car Integration: One Step Closer to Connected Mobility
Huawei continues to push its vehicle software integration efforts with HarmonyOS 6. The latest version enhances Star Connection technology, bringing deeper synergy between smartphones and smart vehicles.
Now users can engage in smart parking, authorize in-car payments, and control media and navigation systems directly from their phone. These features are expected to evolve further as HarmonyOS becomes a standard across Huawei-powered cars and infotainment systems.
The aim is to offer a consistent digital experience—whether you’re sitting on your couch or behind the wheel.
6. Visual Privacy with Star Shield Security
Privacy has become a cornerstone of consumer trust, and HarmonyOS 6 introduces a new visual protection system called Star Shield Security.
Leveraging AI-powered facial recognition and behavioral cues, Star Shield detects when someone is peeking at your screen from the side and automatically hides sensitive content. This real-time “anti-peeping” feature adds a powerful layer of privacy in crowded public spaces like subways, airports, or cafes.
Combined with on-device data processing and minimal reliance on cloud transmission, HarmonyOS 6 reinforces Huawei’s commitment to protecting user data.
7. Ecosystem Expansion and One-Code Deployment
HarmonyOS 6 enhances the operating system’s multi-device deployment capabilities. Developers can now write an app once and deploy it seamlessly across a smartphone, tablet, smartwatch, or even a smart car dashboard without major code rewrites.
This unified development logic reduces fragmentation, speeds up app delivery, and ensures a consistent user interface across form factors. Huawei reports that more than 30,000 apps and meta-services have already been adapted to HarmonyOS, and over 8 million developers are engaged with the ecosystem.
This model is similar to Apple’s vision of cross-platform apps but uniquely tailored for Huawei’s vast range of connected products.
8. Device Compatibility and Beta Timeline
The HarmonyOS 6 developer beta is open for testing until June 30, with firmware builds becoming available from June 25 onwards. Initially, it supports select high-end Huawei devices, including:
- Smartphones: Mate 70, Mate 70 Pro, Mate 60, Mate 60 Pro, Mate X5
- Tablets: MatePad Pro 13.2″ (2025), MatePad Pro 11″ (2024)
The commercial rollout is expected later this year, likely alongside the Huawei Mate 80 series, where HarmonyOS 6 will debut as a stable consumer-ready platform.
9. HarmonyOS NEXT and the Road Ahead
Another critical milestone in Huawei’s software journey is HarmonyOS NEXT, a pure-native version of the operating system that drops all legacy Android compatibility. This move signals Huawei’s intent to become fully independent of Android architecture and Google services.
HarmonyOS 6 is an important bridge toward that transition. While current versions still retain some Android-compatible layers, the emphasis on AI agents, native development tools, and microkernel-based design points to a long-term vision of a closed-loop, self-sufficient operating ecosystem.
Conclusion
The launch of the HarmonyOS 6 developer beta marks a turning point in Huawei’s operating system journey. By embedding AI at its core, enhancing cross-device continuity, strengthening user privacy, and supporting developers with next-gen tools, HarmonyOS 6 aims to become more than just a mobile OS—it wants to be the brain behind a truly intelligent digital life.
While challenges remain—particularly in global developer adoption, app diversity, and ecosystem expansion—Huawei’s steady investment and innovation are gradually narrowing the gap with Android and iOS.
As we look toward the public release in late 2025, HarmonyOS 6 could very well define the next phase of human-device interaction: smart, secure, and seamlessly interconnected.
