When the iPhone sparked the smartphone revolution in 2007, no one could have predicted that it would bring “human connectivity” from the PC to our pockets, giving rise to a trillion-dollar mobile internet ecosystem. Today, AI hardware is replaying this “epoch-making transformation”—but this time, it is not about “migration of endpoints” but rather about “reconstruction of networks”: upgrading from “human-to-human connections” to a “hybrid interconnection of humans, machines, and objects”. A grander AI internet era, larger than the mobile internet, is accelerating towards us. The mobile internet changed the way “people connect with each other”, while the AI internet will change the “logic of how the world operates”.1. The mobile internet is an “upgrade of connections”, while the AI internet is a “reconstruction of species”.We often say that the AI internet is the “next mobile internet”, but the essential difference between the two is comparable to the leap from “feature phones to smartphones”—the former is about “efficiency improvement”, while the latter is about “ecological reconstruction”. The core of the mobile internet is to “liberate people from their PCs”: socializing moved from QQ to WeChat, shopping shifted from the Taobao website to apps, and information retrieval transitioned from Baidu search to short videos—essentially, it is still about “information exchange between people”, just that the medium has changed from “fixed endpoints” to “mobile endpoints”, with the core node of the network always being “people”.However, the core of the AI internet is to “make machines core participants in the network”: your in-car AI will negotiate charging prices with the charging station AI, your health AI will collaborate with the hospital AI for diagnosis, and the factory’s robotic arm AI will plan delivery routes with the logistics AI—humans are no longer the “sole center” but rather a node in the “human-machine hybrid network”. The scale leap brought about by this change is exponential: the number of nodes in the mobile internet is over 7 billion people globally; while the number of nodes in the AI internet will be “7 billion people + hundreds of billions of AI hardware + trillions of smart devices”—each smart car, each home robot, and each industrial sensor will be a network node capable of autonomous interaction and transactions. Just as the scale of the mobile internet far exceeds that of the PC internet, the boundaries of the AI internet will completely break the limitations of “human connections”, extending into every corner of the physical world.2. The AI era’s “iPhone moment”: a triple revolution in hardware, systems, and ecology.The explosion of the mobile internet stemmed from the iron triangle of “iPhone (hardware) + iOS (system) + App Store (ecology)”. For the AI internet to truly take off, it also requires the resonance of these three revolutions—now, this revolution is beginning to take shape.### 1. AI Hardware: From “tools” to “intelligent agents”, becoming the “nerve endings” of the network.The revolutionary aspect of the iPhone lies in transforming a “communication tool” into a “mobile computing terminal”; while the revolutionary aspect of AI hardware lies in transforming a “single-function device” into an “intelligent agent capable of perception and decision-making”. Today’s AI hardware has already exhibited these characteristics:– Smart Cars: Not just “transportation tools with screens”, but “mobile AI nodes”—capable of autonomous navigation, interacting with traffic systems, and in the future, helping users complete full-process operations like “booking charging stations and automatically paying for parking”;– Humanoid Robots: Such as Tesla’s Optimus and UTree H1, not just “moving mechanical arms”, but “collaborative partners that can understand scenarios”—able to adjust actions based on the home environment and work with smart home systems to complete tasks like “cleaning and cooking”;– Personal AI Assistants: No longer just “talking speakers”, but “your understanding personal agents”—able to help you filter information, manage schedules, and even represent you in interactions with other AIs to complete complex operations like “booking flights and negotiating partnerships”. These AI hardware are becoming the “nerve endings” of the AI internet—they perceive information from the physical world, execute intelligent decisions, and collaborate with other nodes, ultimately weaving a global “intelligent network”.2. AI Operating Systems: Large models as the “core”, reconstructing “interaction logic”.The core of iOS is an “interaction system designed for mobile scenarios”; while the core of the AI era’s operating system is a “cognitive system designed for intelligent agent collaboration”, with large models likely being the “core” of this system. Unlike traditional operating systems, the core of AI operating systems is not about “managing hardware resources”, but about “processing intelligent collaboration”:– Natural language as the “universal interface”: No longer needing to “click icons or input commands”, humans or machines only need to express needs in natural language, and the operating system can parse and execute— for example, if you say “let the robot at home clean the house”, the AI operating system will automatically link the robot AI and smart home AI to coordinate the task;– Cross-device collaboration as the “norm”: Your personal AI assistant, smart car, and home robot share a single “AI system core”, allowing them to share data and collaborate on decisions—for instance, if you set your personal AI to “play music when I get home”, when you approach your front door, the home speaker will automatically play music, and the car AI will update the status to “safely home”;– Autonomous evolution as a “capability”: Based on the iteration of large models, the operating system can continuously optimize decision logic—for example, the AI system in smart cars will improve navigation accuracy and driving safety based on user driving habits and road condition data. This operating system is becoming the “central brain” of the AI internet—it connects all intelligent agents, unifying interaction logic, making complex human-machine collaboration simple.3. AI Ecology: From “APP aggregation” to “intelligent agent collaboration”, giving rise to a new “value network”.The revolutionary aspect of the App Store lies in creating a “connection platform for developers and users”; while the ecology of the AI era lies in creating a “collaboration network for intelligent agents”—no longer is it about “humans downloading apps to use”, but rather “intelligent agents calling capabilities as needed”. This ecology is already beginning to sprout:– Vertical AI Applications: Such as medical AI, educational AI, and industrial AI, are no longer “isolated software”, but rather “capability modules that can be embedded in networks”—hospital AI can call upon the diagnostic capabilities of medical AI, and home AI can call upon the teaching capabilities of educational AI;– AI Capability Market: In the future, platforms similar to the “App Store” will emerge, but instead of “APPS”, they will feature “AI capability interfaces”—developers can upload capabilities like “image recognition and speech synthesis”, and other AI hardware or intelligent agents can call upon them as needed, paying per usage;– Human-Machine Symbiosis Scenarios: In this ecology, the division of labor between humans and AI becomes clear—humans are responsible for “proposing needs and setting goals”, while AI is responsible for “executing details and coordinating resources”. For example, if you want to host an offline event, you only need to tell the AI “time, location, number of people”, and the AI will automatically link “venue booking AI, catering AI, and promotion AI” to complete the entire preparation process. This ecology is becoming the “value carrier” of the AI internet—it allows collaboration between intelligent agents to generate new value and enables humans to utilize AI capabilities more efficiently, creating a commercial space far exceeding that of the mobile internet.3. The greatness of this era lies in “redefining the relationship between humans and the world”.The mobile internet made “human-to-human connections” more efficient, while the AI internet makes “human-to-world connections” more free. In the mobile internet era, our lives were segmented by “APPS”: chatting on WeChat, shopping on Taobao, navigating with Gaode— we had to switch between different tools to complete complex tasks. But in the AI internet era, we only need to face “one AI partner”, which will help us link all intelligent agents to complete all operations from “daily chores” to “major decisions”.More importantly, the AI internet will make “innovation” more inclusive: in the mobile internet era, developing an APP required a professional technical team; while in the AI era, ordinary people only need to describe their needs in natural language, and AI can generate corresponding “intelligent agent collaboration plans”—for example, a small business owner, without needing to understand programming, can link their AI devices with supply chain AI and logistics AI to achieve “intelligent restocking and automatic delivery”.This is the greatness of the AI internet era: it is no longer about “technological upgrades”, but about “liberating people”—allowing humans to break free from tedious tasks and focus on creation, thinking, and experience, while leaving repetitive and complex work to the AI network.4. Conclusion: Standing at the “dawn of the AI internet”.Sixteen years ago, the release of the iPhone opened the mobile internet era, changing the lifestyles of billions; today, the rise of AI hardware is ushering in a grander AI internet era, which will change the logic of how the entire world operates. What we see now—smart cars, humanoid robots, personal AI assistants—are just the “buds” of this era—just as no one could have imagined super apps like WeChat and Douyin at the time of the iPhone’s release. The future AI internet will give birth to hardware, systems, and ecologies that we cannot currently imagine, will spawn trillion-dollar new industries, and will make “human-machine symbiosis” the norm. This is an era full of unknowns, but also full of opportunities. Just as the mobile internet created giants like Apple, Tencent, and Alibaba, the AI internet will undoubtedly create a new batch of global giants—those who can see the trends and lay out their strategies in advance will ultimately become the “wave makers” of this great era. The curtain of the AI internet has just begun to rise.Friends interested in AI hardware can join the group for discussions: