Launching the Mate 50 smartphone series on September 6, the CEO of Huawei’s Consumer Business Group, Richard Yu, confirmed earlier speculations that the latest product could support satellite-based short message service (SMS). A day earlier, Huawei had already released a teaser video indicating this capability. The official announcement marks a new chapter for the global telecommunications and smartphone industry, especially when Apple’s iPhone 14, due to be launched on September 7, is rumored to possess a similar capability. Despite the fact that an an over-the-air upgrade is needed to enable the function and that current coverage is limited to China, Yu said that Mate 50 is the world’s first smartphone supporting SMS based on China’s homegrown BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, and would allow users to send emergency text messages and locations via satellites, even in areas beyond territorial network coverage.