As the battle with Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) heats up, Samsung introduces the S25 smartphone with enhanced AI.

Samsung Electronics unveiled its latest flagship smartphone Galaxy S25 series on Wednesday, introducing custom chips and enhanced artificial intelligence features. In the year leading up to the release of the S25, the company's smartphone shipments had been under pressure from Chinese manufacturers and Apple Inc. Similar to previous flagship products, Samsung's S25 series comes in three models: S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra. The starting prices for the models are as follows: Galaxy S25: $799, Galaxy S25+: $999, Galaxy S25 Ultra: $1299. Samsung Electronics will begin taking pre-orders on Wednesday and start selling the S25 on February 7. Front and center of Samsung Galaxy AI Last year, Samsung introduced a set of artificial intelligence features called Galaxy AI on the S24. With the S25, Samsung is introducing additional AI applications aimed at making the phone more like a digital personal assistant. According to the announcement, Samsung's latest devices can perform tasks across multiple applications. For example, users can ask the phone to find the schedule for their favorite football team and add it to their calendar. Or users can prompt the AI application to find pet-friendly restaurants nearby and send it to a specific contact. All of these operations will be carried out across multiple applications by the device. Samsung says that this feature supports third-party apps such as Spotify, Meta's WhatsApp, as well as Samsung's own apps and Alphabet Inc. Class C's apps. The AI applications can also change phone settings based on user prompts. Samsung's latest feature highlights how this South Korean tech giant and some competitors are striving to make AI on devices more like users' personal assistants to cater to people's habits and preferences. Last year, Apple Inc. began introducing a set of AI features called Apple Intelligence on the iPhone. Device manufacturers see AI as a way to differentiate their hardware from many competitors. In Samsung's case, the company hopes this technology will help boost sales of its high-end products. Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said in an interview, "As hardware capabilities and product design are mainly incremental improvements, Samsung is doubling down on its AI story. The Galaxy S25 series has some more advanced enhancement features, but they may not be enough to persuade consumers to upgrade their phones early." "However, this is not just a Samsung problem. Apple Inc. is facing the same challenge with the iPhone 16 and Apple Intelligence. AI is a blessing for those who need to upgrade, but it's not enough to change the situation for consumers who already have relatively new phones." Data from International Data Corporation (IDC) shows that in the fourth quarter of last year, Samsung's smartphone shipments fell by 2.7% year-on-year, and market share shrank. By shipment volume, Samsung ranked second, only after Apple Inc. Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturers Xiaomi, Transsion, and Vivo are increasing their market share, as they have been launching aggressively priced, reliable devices. Wood of CCS Insight concluded that the S25 series is "great for an increasing number of consumers with phones that are three or four years old," but "it is unlikely to speed up people's upgrades." Custom chips, new design To support the latest AI features, Samsung collaborated with Qualcomm to develop a custom processor. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor is exclusive to Samsung and the South Korean giant claims it is the fastest processor in Galaxy devices. A fast but low-power processor inside smartphones is essential to ensure managing heavy AI workloads without draining the battery. Samsung also mentioned other hardware changes, including improved cameras and a new design for the S25 Ultra model. The S25 series now features a rounded design, as opposed to its predecessor's angular design.