Doubao's phone assistant ships on its first handset and opens a 30-day opt-in for app automation

Doubao, the Chinese consumer AI brand, released the consumer version of its phone assistant on September 14. The first device running it, the Nubia NaviX Ultra, goes on sale in China on September 16, with pre-orders already open.

The assistant ships with a Screen Automation Execution Protocol (SAEP) that opened a 30-day public consultation the same day. Third-party app vendors are asked to declare which screens the on-device agent may automate; the assistant commits to honor refusals. SAEP remains a draft, and its terms can change after the window closes.

The assistant is built into the phone's system rather than delivered as a separate app. It wakes on voice or a dedicated AI key with built-in fingerprint authentication, so verified users can summon it without unlocking the phone each time. On-screen Q&A reads the active screen instead of asking the user to switch apps or grab a screenshot; ride-hailing and meeting-note flows ship as first-party demos.

Screen automation is still a closed Beta, with the protocol drawing the boundary. Doubao's privacy white paper restates a "necessary and reasonable, user-controlled" rule layered with agent guardrails. Chinese tech outlet IT之家 also covers the GUI-cooperation protocol announcement.

What remains unknown: which major apps file declarations during the 30-day window, and whether the post-consultation rules stay voluntary.