Huawei is gearing up to launch its HarmonyOS to the world, in a move that would likely compete with Google's Android.

HarmonyOS is a new operating system developed by Huawei that aims to replace Google's Android OS on the phones they ship, and could present a massive opportunity to software developers.

Key Highlights

• Huawei is set to roll out HarmonyOS to the world starting from 2nd June (today).
  
• The operating system looks and feels very similar to Android, but has many changes under the hood.
• In fact, HarmonyOS reportedly performs much more effectively on devices with lower hardware performance, and is also capable of running existing Android apps with minimal to no issues.

Why It Matters

• Earlier last year, the US along with Google prevented Huawei devices from working fully on the Android operating system.
• This has resulted in Huawei's sales outside China falling significantly, and many users not being able to use Google's mobile services on Huawei devices.
• With HarmonyOS likely to be available on a few hundred-million devices, this presents a massive opportunity for developers looking to get their apps into the phones of more people.
• There is a possibility that more Chinese smartphones will run on HarmonyOS in the long run as the country's tech giants aim to move away  on their reliance on US's mobile software technology.