Recently, the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) released the "eSIM Industry Development Research Report (2026)". The report shows that as of the first quarter of 2026, the total number of global cumulative eSIM connections has surpassed 1.3 billion, and the global eSIM industry is gradually transitioning from early pilot programs to a cycle of large-scale deployment. The report points out that the global eSIM industry is reaching a critical turning point: the network-side construction previously driven by operators has gradually matured, and industrial competition is shifting from "whether to have eSIM" to "how to enable more devices, users, and scenarios to use eSIM." The Chinese market has become a crucial variable in this round of industrial transformation.
Large-Scale Expansion of the Global Market The report indicates that the global eSIM industry has entered a stage of large-scale expansion. In 2025, global eSIM device shipments reached 605 million units, a year-on-year increase of 18%, hitting a record high. GSMA predicts that by 2030, eSIM will account for 42% of all SIM technologies, officially surpassing traditional physical SIMs to become the dominant SIM form factor. Regionally, the global eSIM market exhibits differentiated development trends. The North American market leads globally, with its market share expected to reach 39%; the European market develops steadily, with its share stabilizing in the 27%-28% range; as the trial commercialization of smartphone eSIM advances domestically, the penetration rate in the Chinese market continues to rise, with its share projected to increase to 13%. The report notes that as of the first quarter of 2026, over 400 mobile operators worldwide provide eSIM services, covering more than 120 countries and regions. However, the growth rate of new operators offering eSIM services has significantly slowed down since 2022, indicating that the infrastructure construction on the operator side is nearing completion. The focus of industrial development in the next stage will shift towards service depth and connection quality. On the device side, the proportion of global eSIM smartphone shipments will reach 37% in 2025 and is expected to rise to 48% in 2026, marking a rapid volume expansion phase for cardless penetration in consumer devices. Global device manufacturers have formed two clear eSIM product upgrade paths: the pure eSIM slotless technical route led by Apple, and the physical SIM + eSIM dual-card compatible transition route adopted by Samsung and Google. eSIM smartphones in the Chinese market are mainly divided into three categories: the first is the pure eSIM solution, the second is the single physical SIM slot + dual eSIM storage solution, and the third is the "2 physical SIMs + 2 eSIMs" four-card dual-standby solution.
Highlighting the Potential of the Chinese Market In October 2025, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) officially approved the three major operators to conduct commercial trials of eSIM smartphone operation services, marking China's entry into the full-category development stage of eSIM. After more than a year of development, the device ecosystem has expanded rapidly. As of July 2026, eSIM smartphones supported by China-authorized versions cover 11 models from mainstream brands such as Apple, Huawei, OPPO, Honor, Samsung, and Lenovo. The product types cover multiple segmented markets including imaging flagships, widescreen foldables, lightweight and ultra-thin devices, and AI gaming esports, showing a trend of accelerated penetration from high-end flagships to diversified categories. Meanwhile, China's eSIM industry chain has formed a full-chain closed-loop ecosystem covering chip design and manufacturing, module R&D, platform services, device integration, and operator services. In the upstream, domestic chip companies represented by Unigroup Thrive and China Huada Electronics have passed GSMA international certification for their eSIM chip products and achieved large-scale mass production; in the midstream, platform service providers such as Redtea Mobile and Eastcompeace provide remote provisioning management platforms and standardized solutions to meet the needs of multiple scenarios such as consumer electronics and connected vehicles; in the downstream, device manufacturers launch eSIM-compatible smartphones, wearable devices, and industrial IoT modules to drive hardware innovation. On the operator side, the three major operators have launched eSIM services across all 31 provinces. The report predicts that new domestic eSIM connections will exceed 120 million throughout 2026, and by 2028, the total number of domestic eSIM connections will surpass 500 million. The Chinese market will officially surpass Europe to become the world's largest single eSIM market.
"AI + eSIM" Becomes a New Engine During the commercialization of eSIM smartphones, the three major operators—China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom—have each focused on different aspects and promoted them collaboratively, forming a distinctive development pattern. As of May 2026, China Unicom has released 13 eSIM models covering six major brands in the smartphone industry. China Mobile, together with five major brands including Huawei, has launched 12 eSIM smartphone devices and established the eSIM Device Ecosystem Alliance together with nearly 50 core industry chain partners. China Telecom initiated the establishment of the eSIM Sub-Alliance under the China Telecom Terminal Industry Alliance, and collaborated with the industry to formulate eSIM industry standards for devices and chips, carrying out joint product R&D and key testing technology research. The report points out that in 2026, given the rapid evolution of AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology, AI devices are experiencing explosive growth, and eSIM has been upgraded to the intelligent connection foundation for AI devices. As the main promoters of China's eSIM industry development, operators are actively integrating AI + eSIM as a crucial strategic direction, exploring and forming distinctive development paths. China Unicom, with cloud-intelligent devices as its core positioning, is building an industrial collaborative ecosystem with the deep integration of AI and eSIM. By creating a "plug-and-play" AI device operation platform, aggregating multi-modal large model capabilities, and comprehensively opening up eSIM operation capabilities, it significantly lowers the docking threshold for industry chain manufacturers. China Mobile has built a "1+3+9" AI-eSIM multi-ecosystem intelligent service system, comprising 1 fully domestic, financial-grade secure AI-eSIM chip entry point and 3 core engines that empower 9 key scenarios, and pioneering a unified identity mechanism of "operator number as large model account." In June, China Mobile joined hands with JD.com, Tencent, Volcano Engine, and others to establish the AI-eSIM Laboratory, dedicated to cutting-edge technology research and innovative scenario incubation. China Telecom takes standard leadership and full-scenario ecosystem co-creation as its core focus to promote the deep integration and implementation of AI and eSIM technologies. Relying on the 2026 Full-Category Device Co-creation Action and the eSIM Sub-Alliance, which was launched in late 2025, it collaborates with industry chain partners across chips, devices, and platforms to jointly formulate eSIM device and chip industry technical standards.
-END- Editor/Layout: Zhu Wenfeng Proofreader: Mei Yaxin Supervisor: Liu Qicheng