Reputed and reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that the company will launch a foldable iPhone in 2023 featuring an 8-inch QHD+ OLED display.

The analyst expects shipments of the foldable iPhone to reach 15-20 million units in 2023. He says that foldable smartphones will become an important product for all smartphone brands in the coming years and play a key factor in the next “super replacement cycle.” While Apple is yet to launch a foldable device, Kuo believes the company is poised to become the “biggest winner” in the foldable device category.

Based on our latest industry survey, we forecast that Apple will likely launch a foldable ‌iPhone‌ with an 8-inch QHD+ flexible OLED display in 2023, with SDC as the exclusive display supplier and Samsung Foundry as the exclusive DDI foundry provider. Based on Apple’s requested capacity plan, we predict that the foldable ‌iPhone‌ shipments will reach 15-20 million units in 2023. We expect that the foldable ‌iPhone‌ will adopt TPK’s silver nanowire touch solution because of its several advantages over SDC’s Y-Octa technology.

It has been previously rumored that Apple is looking to launch a foldable iPhone in 2023, which could support Apple Pencil.

Kuo further adds that right now, foldable devices are being used to integrate smartphones and tablets. However, he believes there’s a wider use case for foldable devices and that they will blur the line between smartphones, tablets, and laptops in the future. Due to Apple’s tight ecosystem integration across its products and superior hardware design, the company will be the “biggest winner in the new foldable device trend.”

Apple is expected to adopt a silver nanowire touch solution for its foldable iPhone. This technology will give it a key advantage over its competitors since it is required in foldable devices with multiple folds. Apple is already using the silver nanowire technology on the HomePod, thereby giving it time to further understand and refine the tech.

Samsung is currently the leader of foldable devices, with its Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Fold series of devices. The company has been rapidly developing and refining its foldable devices with every new iteration. On the other hand, Apple is yet to launch or demo a foldable device. However, Kuo expects the company to dominate the foldable device market just like it currently does with the iPhone.