Huawei Unveils Harmony NEXT Cockpit Rollout Plan: Commercial Launch by End of 2026, Dual-Framework Cockpit Accelerated Due to Competitor Design Similarities

At the HDC 2026 Developer Conference, Huawei unveiled the rollout plan for HarmonyOS NEXT Cockpit: a developer beta version will launch in June 2026, followed by an in-vehicle beta version in September, and a commercial consumer release in December. The HarmonyOS Cockpit emulator will soon be integrated into DevEco Studio. Originally slated to debut exclusively on the NEXT Cockpit (native HarmonyOS Cockpit), the new cockpit interface has been brought forward and implemented earlier on the dual-framework HarmonyOS Cockpit due to numerous similar designs already released by other manufacturers, in order to maintain competitiveness. The NEXT Cockpit emulator demonstrated at the event remains in an early stage, with many features still under development. During the “Smart Mobility” segment of the conference, two sessions were held: “Sharing the New HarmonyOS Ecosystem, Co-Creating a New Chapter for Cockpits” and “Open Capabilities of HarmonyOS NEXT Cockpit,” presented respectively by Huawei’s Consumer BG Software Department and its Software Department for Sports Health & Smart Mobility. Previously, in April 2025, Huawei’s Qiankun Intelligent Automotive Solution announced the launch of the HarmonyOS NEXT-based In-Vehicle Operating System Pioneer Developer Program. Initial partners include iQIYI, BabyBus, Bilibili, Changba, AutoNavi (Amap), Mango TV, Tencent Music Entertainment Group (including QQ Music, KuGou Music, WeSing, and Kuwo Music), Himalaya, Youku, and YunTing.