Samsung President and CEO TM Roh started his keynote at the July 2026 Galaxy Unpacked in London with a number: 800 million. That’s how many devices will have Galaxy AI by the end of 2026. For Roh, the number wasn’t about scale for its own sake. Like any infrastructure, he said, its value lies in how many people it reaches.
The event had a storyline of a theatre production, opening with the line, “Every shape your life takes, Galaxy takes it with you.” It had vignettes of London city life woven throughout, and a moment of achievement that brought it all together at the end. Before the big reveals, Roh explained why Samsung is so passionate about leading the way in mobile AI.
“For most people, their AI experience begins with their phone,” Roh said, “not just because it is always with them, but because it understands them better than any other device.”
Roh framed foldables as the answer to what he called the defining question: if AI is becoming more personal, more proactive and more multidimensional, what is the optimal device to bring that experience to life? He also gave the audience even more to look forward to in Samsung’s new smart glasses. Then the curtain rose.
9:12: Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra: Eight years of foldable leadership, now in Ultra
Kadesh Beckford, Smartphone Specialist Product Manager at Samsung, took the stage to introduce Samsung’s most advanced foldable yet.
“Eight years in, your voice continues to inspire what comes next for foldables,” Beckford said. “And today, we’re taking a bold leap forward.”
The engineering story centers on Flex Titanium, a new display structure that replaces polymer layers with a titanium alloy film roughly one-third the thickness of a human hair. It’s 20 times stiffer than the previous model, while making the Fold8 Ultra the thinnest Galaxy Fold ever made.
“When you’re moving between meetings or jumping from a call to a presentation,” Beckford said, “you need a device that’s durable enough to keep up.”
The battery keeps pace with a 5,000mAh cell, the largest ever in a Galaxy Z Fold, and a new dual-path charging system that goes from completely drained to 67% in 30 minutes. It delivers up to 27 hours of video playback. Both screens get a resolution bump. Peak brightness reaches 3,000 nits, and a low-reflection finish, appearing on a Galaxy Fold for the first time, keeps content clear even in direct sunlight.
The camera system includes the ProVisual Engine, an upgraded Ultra-Wide lens and Nightography for low-light shooting, with 8K recording for full-resolution capture.
Galaxy AI runs throughout the device in ways built for busy days. Now Nudge is accessible through notifications, the keyboard and an ambient overlay, pulling in calendar context mid-conversation so you can respond without leaving the thread. The Personal Data Engine works on-device, showing details exactly when you need them. And Gemini Notebook lets you drag in photos and files from a meeting and automatically consolidates them into notes.
As Beckford put it, “This is AI designed to help you move through your day.”
9:24: Galaxy Z Fold8: The Fold that fits how content flows
While the Z Fold8 Ultra is undoubtedly the headliner, the Z Fold8 is impressive in its own right.
Where the Ultra follows the traditional tall, narrow Fold proportions, the Z Fold8 is wider and shorter, with a 4:3 inner display that changes how content feels on the screen. Closed, it scrolls like a phone. Open, you get an expansive experience with posts and comments side by side, browser content that fits without endless scrolling, and a portrait mode that Hannah Trott, from Channel Marketing at Samsung, described as “a digital library in your hand.” You can probably picture reading research, long-form articles or documents on the go.
“Galaxy Z Fold8 lets you move from questions to answers with ease,” Trott said.
The battery runs to 4,800mAh with up to 26 hours of video playback, all in the world’s lightest Fold ever. The cover screen doubles as a natural camera viewfinder, with a grip Trott likened to a classic digital camera. Dual 50MP wide and ultrawide lenses do the capture, and Photo Assist handles editing through simple text prompts with before-and-after comparisons side by side. For anyone creating company social media content, it punches well above what you’d expect from a phone, even into professional gear territory.
9:34: Galaxy Z Flip8: More AI, same pocket-perfect form
Lee Dinham, Samsung Product Specialist, introduced the Z Flip8 as the foldable for people who move through life with openness and spontaneity. The FlexWindow has always been where that spirit shows first, and this year it takes a meaningful step forward.
One UI 9, built on Android 17 and arriving on Galaxy foldables for the first time, brings a fully redesigned
FlexWindow experience. The interface now makes full use of the edge-to-edge cover display, with gestures that work exactly as they do on the main screen. Swipe down from the left for notifications, right for the quick panel, across for widgets, up for apps. Your apps now run full screen on the FlexWindow, and Now Brief lives on the home screen, giving you context-aware information before you think to ask for it. That’s the AI layer Roh was talking about. You can also build custom reminder cards tailored to your own routines.
The Z Flip8’s 50MP Flex Cam gets the ProVisual Engine from the Galaxy S26 series, and a vintage camcorder grip paired with Super Steady stabilization makes handheld video more reliable. Aside from the luxury of having a great camera for daily life, we’re really seeing Samsung claim its place in creative brand marketing, where content is becoming increasingly candid and spontaneous. And at 180 grams (0.4 pounds), it’s the thinnest Flip yet.
9:41: A timely Spider-Man cameo
When watching live, it came as a surprise. But in hindsight, there were signs. Trott had mentioned a new hope unfolding. Dinham said the Fold8 Ultra could help someone save the day. When the speaking gave way to an intricate Spider-Man sketch, it was the perfect tie-in to Spider-Man: Brand New Day, opening July 31.
After the action-packed sequence, actor Jacob Batalon, who plays Ned in the film, took the stage to show off the Z Fold8 Ultra in action.
“It’s not just multitasking,” Batalon said. “It’s seeing everything together. Not switching between things but watching everything unfold in parallel.”
Most of us aren’t tracking Spider-Man, but the parallel to a demanding workday is hard to miss when you think of managing a project tracker alongside a communication thread or staying across multiple streams without losing sight of any of them.
The next segment moved to Samsung Care+, which has expanded beyond basic device protection into a broader range of tailored coverage options. Convenient repair services are available worldwide, with priority support and minimal downtime. One UI 9 introduces a new Warranty and Care hub in settings where you can check coverage, run diagnostics and request a repair in one place.
9:46: Galaxy Card makes its debut
Samsung Wallet has grown into an everyday hub for payments, keys, IDs and boarding passes. In a somewhat under-the-radar announcement, Samsung introduced the Galaxy Card, launching in the U.S. in partnership with Barclays and Visa. It’s the first financial service built directly on Samsung Wallet, with competitive cash rewards. Looking ahead, Samsung Wallet will also support stablecoins, making Samsung one of the first major mobile brands to bring native stablecoin capability to a smartphone. Samsung Knox provides end-to-end encryption across the entire financial ecosystem.
9:50: Galaxy Watch9: Making health proactive
Next, the Galaxy Watch9 reveal opened with its face draped over the clock on Big Ben. Sharanya Desai, Ph.D., Digital Health at Samsung, immediately set the tone that the Galaxy Watch is very much a health device.
“For too long, we’ve approached health reactively,” Desai said, “waiting until something feels wrong before going in for a checkup. We are changing that narrative.”
With over 77 million Samsung Health users as its foundation, Galaxy Watch9 shifts from tracking to anticipating. While you sleep, it monitors five key biometrics to build a baseline unique to you. Each morning, it flags significant deviations in heart rate or HRV and offers guidance for managing your day. Those insights roll up into a Heart Health Score that connects daily habits to long-term cardiovascular risk in plain language.
When it comes to fitness, a new Fitness Index evaluates how ready your body is before a given workout. The Running Coach that launched last year now goes deeper, analyzing stride and posture after each run. Strava integration is coming this fall.
Sleep apnea is also getting lots of attention in the health sphere. The Galaxy Watch9 is now FDA-cleared to give deeper insight into breathing disruption levels during sleep. And this fall, Galaxy Ring becomes the first and only FDA-cleared over-the-counter ring device for sleep apnea risk detection.
9:57: Galaxy Watch Ultra2: 60 hours, zero compromises
Samsung’s John Englehardt, from Product Marketing, introduced the Galaxy Watch Ultra2 as the watch for those who demand more from every day.
The design brings the screen, bezel and body into a single cohesive form for a thinner, cleaner profile. The redesigned band uses refined elastic silicone with air pocket ventilation, a small detail that looks like it makes a big difference on a watch you wear through a full day of activity.
Performance backs up the look. The Ultra2 has a 35% larger battery than its predecessor, delivering up to 60 hours on a single charge. Peak brightness reaches 5,000 nits, a world first for any watch display, keeping stats readable in direct sunlight, in motion or at a glance. Rugged titanium construction is backed by IP69K and 10 ATM ratings, the highest dust and water resistance ever on a Galaxy Watch.
The Ultra2 also meets the EN13319 international standard for diving accessories, with a Mares partnership bringing a full decompression dive computer to the wrist, including nitrogen absorption monitoring.
10:03: Samsung x Google x Qualcomm
Won-Joon Choi, President and COO of Samsung’s MX Business, took the stage to talk about Samsung’s focus on openness.
“We believe technology should adapt to people, not the other way around,” Choi said. “Your devices should never limit what you can create, access or experience.”
Choi invited Rick Osterloh, SVP at Google, to the stage to share the latest on Samsung’s longstanding partnership with Google.
“We’ve been evolving Android from an operating system that helps you get things done to an intelligent system that gets things done for you,” Osterloh said.
Gemini Intelligence on the new Galaxy foldables now handles multi-step tasks across more than 40 popular apps, from retail and travel to dinner reservations and event tickets. For larger projects, Gemini Notebook comes preinstalled on all new foldables, connecting the dots across photos and documents from a meeting and generating outputs tailored to how you work. Every Z Fold8 and Z Flip8 series device includes six months of Google AI Pro.
“When you choose Android and Samsung Galaxy,” Osterloh said, “you know you’re seeing the future first.”
Choi returned to address the importance of keeping AI in your control, a topic that is heavily in discussion daily. “Control is not a burden,” he said. “It is your right.” Only agents pre-verified by Android can run automation on Galaxy devices, and each one requires explicit user permission before accessing anything.
Cristiano Amon, President & CEO of Qualcomm, added to the partnership segment by putting the hardware underneath everything into context. For nearly 30 years, he said, Samsung and Qualcomm have engineered the future of mobile technology together. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy powers the new foldables with a third-generation Oryon CPU, Adreno GPU and Hexagon NPU designed to run AI directly on the device. And for the first time, Snapdragon Wear Elite is powering Samsung Galaxy watches, bringing the same performance and efficiency architecture to the wrist.
“Samsung is creating a more connected Galaxy ecosystem,” Amon said. “Google is advancing Gemini intelligence on Android. And Qualcomm is delivering the computing and connectivity that makes it possible.”
10:19: Galaxy Glasses: AI you want to wear
Typically, the latest foldables are plenty to get the Unpacked audience and news wires buzzing. But everyone knew there was one more thing left. Choi once again returned to the stage, this time wearing Samsung’s new intelligent (and seriously stylish) eyewear.
“It has to feel like part of your identity,” Choi said. “Eyewear you choose because it reflects who you are.”
Samsung partnered with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker, two brands with distinct design identities, to design smart glasses that lead with aesthetics and transform with technology. Every gram was a conscious decision. Samsung’s glasses are lighter than most comparable AI glasses, with up to 9 hours on a single charge and a case that can charge them more than seven times over.
The moment you press the button on the frame, the glasses are ready. No fumbling for a phone, no opening an app. For work, ask them to summarize the notes on a whiteboard and save everything to Samsung Notes. At home, get the next step in a recipe without looking away from the stove. The Galaxy Watch controls the eyewear experience, and everything flows back to your Galaxy phone.
Both eyewear collections arrive this fall.
10:23: When it all comes together
Choi concluded the jam-packed product reveal the way Roh opened it, with a question: “How can our technology help you in meaningful ways?” The answer in everything shown was Galaxy AI working quietly in the background, across every device you carry or wear, so you can stay focused on getting work done and living your life.
“The next chapter of Galaxy starts today,” Choi said. “And it begins with you.”
True to the theatre production storyline, the event ended with a magical moment showing how “Life opens up with Galaxy.”
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