The smartphones industry, which was once the spearhead of tech innovation, is found today at a decisive turning point. While figures like Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg announce the end of smartphones, others – with Tim Cook at the maneuver at Apple – defend the idea of a continuous evolution of these omnipresent devices. New technologies and trends could change our way of interacting with digital technology.
Where is the market and what challenges?
For over ten years, smartphones have dominated the technological landscape, with Apple and Samsung in mind. Today, the sector is entering a late maturity phase: sales have been stagnating for several years. According to an article in The Economist published two years ago, the era of smartphones is declining, raising questions about the ability of companies to continue innovating in a sector where change becomes more and more difficult to start.
In the past, pioneers like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Howard Schultz, Jeff Bezos, Jack Ma and Jack Welch have transformed their industries thanks to their daring vision. Today, Tim Cook is praised for its effective management of Apple, even if its imprint as an innovator remains to be defined.
Innovations that could change everything
The future seems ready to welcome technologies that could well relegate smartphones to the rank of accessory. Among these innovations, there are brain implants and digital tattoos. Elon Musk, for example, places his Neuralink Society at the heart of this next SpaceX revolution thanks to its brain-computer interfaces (BCI), which would allow messages to be sent or make calls just with thought-an option that could also have medical applications.
For his part, Mark Zuckerberg is betting on augmented reality glasses to supplant smartphones in the next decade, as well as virtual screens could replace televisions. He imagines a metavers where the virtual and the concrete mix, likely to upset our daily life by 2030.
Finally, Sam Altman puts on electronic tattoos via his company Chaotic Moon. These tattoos, equipped with nanosenseurs, could transform the monitoring of health and the way in which we communicate, by making the human body a real digital interaction platform.
How to react to these changes?
To counter these potentially revolutionary innovations, Apple continues to bet on a progressive evolution of its smartphones. The new iPhone 16, led by Tim Cook, incorporates artificial intelligence and augmented reality features, while keeping the classic smartphone format. Cook remains convinced that these devices still have their place in our daily lives.
Samsung, it diversifies its products with the Galaxy S24 series, enriched by artificial intelligence, while exploring new horizons with the Galaxy Ring. This approach shows less dependence on mobile communications compared to Apple.
That said, each of these companies must also face its own structural challenges. Internal complexity can slow down the speed of innovation: in Samsung, OEM culture sometimes slows creativity oriented towards the consumer, while Apple is often criticized for its “enclosed garden” strategy.
What future for digital?
The big question remains whether we have to continue relying on our usual devices or adopting these new transforming technologies user interaction. Some are still betting on a bright future for traditional smartphones, thanks to the constant improvements of Apple or Samsung, while others already see the beginnings of a radical change initiated by Musk or Zuckerberg.
