Oppo aims to make GenAI accessible to 50 mn users in 2024, collaborates with Google, Microsoft

Oppo on Wednesday said it aims to make genAI accessible to 50 million users by the end of 2024. It joins other handset makers such as Samsung, Google, and Xiaomi, who are betting on AI to drive sales in the market, especially in the higher end of the price segment.

Notably, in the January to March quarter of 2024, smartphone shipments in India grew by 8-10% as more consumers purchased handsets with 5G and AI capabilities, and as the premiumization trend gained further momentum, as per market trackers.

Oppo said it has rolled out over 100 GenAI capabilities to its smartphones this year and has filed over 5,399 AI patents worldwide, including 3,796 patents for AI imaging.

“With our relentless efforts and commitment, OPPO aims to make AI phones accessible to everyone,” said Billy Zhang, President of Overseas MKT, Sales, and Service at Oppo. “For the first time in the industry, OPPO is bringing generative AI to all product lines. By the end of this year, we expect to bring generative AI features to about 50 million users.”

To this extent, Oppo has set up an AI R&D Centre in China to develop proprietary technologies and support the development of AI capabilities in areas such as image processing, computer vision, speech technology, natural language processing, and machine learning.

Oppo is collaborating with BigTech companies such as Google and Microsoft, and chipset makers Qualcomm and MediaTek to release more AI features.

According to an International Data Corporation study commissioned by Oppo, shipments for AI phones in the sub-$1000 (~sub-Rs 80,000) segment are expected to grow by 250% in 2024 to reach 35 million units.

“Generative AI will increasingly enter everyday life via phones to enhance experiences across entertainment, mobile officing, and more,” the brand said, asserting that it would not employ user data for training models and has established a robust data security and privacy protection system backed by “third-party certifications, end-to-end encryption, and confidential computing technology to ensure user data remains private”.

According to a statement by the smartphone brand, its upcoming flagship series will come with the Google Gemini family of LLMs, with AI features such as an AI Toolbox including AI Writer and AI Recording Summary.

Furthermore, Oppo said it is working with Microsoft to bring a more efficient, accurate, and natural voice and text conversion experience with Microsoft Fast Transcription and Neural TTS technologies. Additionally, the smartphone brand expects collaboration with the Redmond-based technology giant to strengthen the connection between desktop AI and smartphones.

Within this year, Oppo users can use Desktop Copilot to generate content, translate text messages, and search addresses on their smartphones via a connected PC.

Oppo’s work with the abovementioned chipmakers is focused on developing chipsets with dedicated AI processing units (NPU) and accelerators, as well as, optimizing AI features for Oppo’s hardware and software stack. The collaboration also includes developing custom AI frameworks tailored to its needs.

“Our deep collaboration with Google Cloud throughout our journey is pivotal. Google Cloud’s open platform capabilities hold profound significance for OPPO’s advancement of AI phones,” stated Nicole Zhang, GM – AI Product at Oppo.