Folding phones are here. So where is Apple? 

There have been on-and-off rumors for years that Apple is working on a foldable phone—its supplier was developing a bendable glass years ago, and Apple received a patent for a “foldable electronic device” earlier this year. But Apple, which has a 55% smartphone market share in the U.S., has nothing to show for it yet. When Apple launches its latest iPhone on Sept. 12, all indications are that the new phone will look pretty similar to the current model (Bloomberg reports that the frame will be titanium instead of steel, and the screen borders will be thinner).

That’s a shame, given that the ability to fold may be the only exciting thing happening in smartphones these days. Global smartphone sales declined 11% in the second quarter, according to industry research firm Canalys, and Apple’s iPhone revenue has declined for three quarters in a row.

Some of Apple’s competitors are making headway with new shapes. In the most recent foldable-phone news, Chinese government-owned Honor confirmed it will launch the thinnest folding phone to date in global markets come Q1 2024, Android Authority reported on Friday. While it will roll out in Europe, the U.K., and Latin America, it won’t be available in the U.S. The company, part of Huawei until 2020, appears to be building its empire outside the reach of U.S. regulators, which previously instituted sanctions that hurt the business.

Samsung, Google and Microsoft are all making moves in the U.S. Samsung’s folding Galaxy has been available since 2019, and Google recently came for its preeminence by releasing a folding Pixel at the same price in May. Microsoft’s folding Surface Duo 2 came to market in 2021, though it had a tough time selling. 

Given Apple’s hold on the market, it’s possible it doesn’t need to be ultracompetitive in this sector…yet. For smaller phone developers, the launch of a foldable phone largely worked to shorten the gap between themselves and the industry dominators: Apple and Samsung. Globally, Samsung has the highest market share at 20%, and Apple follows with 17%, according to market research company Counterpoint. But the demand for folding phones is growing, and if Apple doesn’t get moving, it could lose further to Samsung. The market is expected to double to $54 billion in the next five years, according to market research firm Mordor Intelligence. 

“The company does not appear to be in a hurry to enter the foldable smartphone market,” Ross Young, an analyst at Display Supply Chain Consultants, wrote in a report last year. The iPhone Flip, Apple’s reported folding phone, is expected to launch in 2025 or later, he said. At the same time, it has reportedly had discussions about a “foldable notebook,” which could materialize in its MacBook or iPad product.

Rachyl Jones

Want to send thoughts or suggestions to Data Sheet? Drop a line here.

NEWSWORTHY

U.S. A.I. regulation. Google Deepmind cofounder Mustafa Suleyman wants the U.S. to regulate artificial intelligence so Nvidia’s sought-after chips only go to those who intend to use the technology ethically. The A.I. maven told the Financial Times that such companies must at the bare minimum sign up to the White House principles agreed to by Google, Amazon, Meta, OpenAI, and others in July.

ID check checked. It’s really not a good week for proponents of online age verification. A day after Australia ditched plans to mandate the mechanism, a Texas judge issued an injunction against the enforcement of a state bill that would make adult video sites check users’ IDs. Judge David Alan Ezra, as quoted by TechCrunch: “The Court agrees that the state has a legitimate goal in protecting children from sexually explicit material online. But that goal, however crucial, does not negate this Court’s burden to ensure that the laws passed in its pursuit comport with established First Amendment doctrine.” Meanwhile, an Arkansas judge blocked that state's bid to become the first to require parental consent for the setting up of minors' social media accounts.

Amazon shareholder suit. The Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund, an Amazon shareholder, has sued the company’s board over its award of billions of dollars in contracts to founder Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin, without full vetting. Amazon plans to use Bezos’s rocket outfit to launch the thousands of broadband-beaming satellites that will comprise its rival to SpaceX’s Starlink constellation. Reuters reports the fund is outraged that SpaceX wasn’t considered as a launch provider.

ON OUR FEED

“Today’s announcements show that President Biden understands that building the cars of the future also necessitates helping the communities challenged by the transition away from the internal combustion engine.”

—U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm, announcing $15.5 billion worth of funding and loans for the conversion of existing auto plants to factories that can churn out electric vehicles

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Elon Musk’s ‘ruthless’ plan to close his Twitter deal early let him fire the social media company’s top execs—and stop them collecting a ‘$200 million’ payout, by Christiaan Hetzner

The SEC got spanked over Bitcoin ETFs. Now what?, by Jeff John Roberts

Netflix doesn’t have a single live sports streaming deal, but it’s dominating the sports game, by Rachyl Jones

Of 397 IPOs in 2021 only 14% are trading above their offer prices. Can Arm, Klaviyo and Instacart break the curse?, by Luisa Beltran

Gen Z is so digitally native they’re using dating apps to network. Even Grindr’s CEO thinks it’s okay, by Paige Hagy

Indeed’s CEO wants to create ‘cyborg’ recruiters that play to the strengths of both humans and A.I., by Orianna Rosa Royle

BEFORE YOU GO

Threads on the web. Did you notice that Meta’s Threads finally became available in web app form last week, as many had demanded? If not, then you’re in good company—according to data from Similarweb, the launch barely moved the needle on visits to the Threads website.

As TechCrunch reports, Threads’ explosive early success was followed by a precipitous drop in usage, of over 80%. But the Instagram-linked platform continues to add new functionality to bring it up to speed with the competition, including a full-text search feature that it is currently testing in Australia and New Zealand.