Industry Shows "K-Shaped Divergence," with AI as the Core Growth Engine

The current consumer electronics industry is no longer experiencing a simple overall recovery or decline, but rather a distinct structural divergence. On one hand, traditional consumer electronics face a chill, with smartphone and PC shipments expected to decline. On the other hand, the AI hardware track is running hot. By the third quarter of 2025, cumulative shipments of generative AI smartphones had surpassed 500 million units, and are projected to exceed 1 billion units in 2026. The global penetration rate of AI PCs has surpassed 50% for the first time. AI is shifting from the cloud to end devices, restructuring underlying value and propelling the industry from a "recovery cycle" into an "innovation dividend period."