Honor is going all in on its “Alpha Plan” in a strange yet terrifying teaser video of its in-progress AI phone, the “Robot Phone.” In the process, the company makes design choices that bear striking resemblances to existing IPs.
Alongside the Magic 8 series, Honor teased a new phone currently in the works. It’s built on AI, and it isn’t subtle. The teaser video shows a device that “will redefine future human-machine interaction and coexistence.”
The video starts with a quick snippet of text that immediately reads “iPhone.” The company is alluding to a next-gen device that takes current flagships further. That text transitions to “AiPhone” in a “or so you thought” moment.
The next scene showcases what looks like the Honor Magic 8, but it soon transitions into something that looks all too familiar. It isn’t exactly the same, but Honor’s Robot Phone looks a lot like the iPhone 17 Pro. It’s a passing resemblance, and the design is making its way through Chinese manufacturers as the new norm.
Apple homage aside, the next shot shows another very familiar piece of IP. It might not be exact, but it really looks like the back of the Robot Phone bears the Sony Alpha logo, which the company uses on its mirrorless camera lineup.
Even further, Honor touts the Robot Phone as the next step in its “Alpha Plan,” which aims to bridge the gap between user value and AI models.
The rest of the video remains weird. A gimbal camera emerges from the back of the Robot Phone with the infantile curiosity of a puppy, complete with head-tilts and audible noises of wonder. Honor seems to be trying to convey the autonomous nature of the unreleased device.
The gimbal and the underlying AI model appear to be able to pan and tilt without command. Several scenes in the video highlight AI-generated scenarios in which the Robot Phone captures content on its own while the user nearby simply takes it in.
The concept is neat, though the logistics of a compact gimbal tightly folded underneath a portion of the rear camera array present its own challenges. It is a teaser video, after all, but Honor seems confident in its arrival.
Honor notes that more information will become clear at MWC 2026, where the company plans to release more details about the AI phone.
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