How Huawei plans to accelerate tech innovation
By Huawei
The Chinese tech giant announced its business results for the first three quarters of 2020 last Friday.
Huawei also released its business results for the first three quarters of 2020. It generated CNY 671.3 billion (US $100.4 billion) in revenue during this period - an increase of 9.9 per cent over the same period last year. The company also recorded a net profit margin of 8 per cent.
“Rapid and healthy development within the ICT industry will rely on open collaboration and mutual trust across the global industry,” said Huawei. Here’s how the tech giant plans to collaborate with partners to nurture growth in the tech industry.
Growing the ICT ecosystem
“ICT has become a cornerstone of modern society and the main driver behind sustainable social, economic, and environmental development,” Huawei said. It plans to work with partners to “continue contributing to pandemic responses, economic growth, and social progress”.
Huawei’s cloud and AI technology has been used by the Longgang district in Shenzhen to facilitate data sharing between government agencies. That has increased the efficiency of public services - and has shortened the time taken for migrant workers to apply for free education to two days.
An aviation technical service provider in Europe is also using 5G for remote aircraft inspections. In-depth inspections used to require two full months of on-site work. Engineers can now use four different 4K livestreams to carry out the inspections, reducing labour costs by 78 per cent.
Huawei also aims to grow the ICT ecosystem by nurturing the growth of deep tech startups. “What’s on the top of all startups’ minds is growth, which ultimately comes down to sales and marketing,” says Leo Jiang, Chief Digital Officer of Huawei Cloud & AI Business Group, Asia Pacific Region.
Its Spark programme provides startups with access to Huawei’s technological leadership and networking events. It also connects companies with potential clients to give startups opportunities to take their products to the market.
Closing the digital talent gap
Huawei also plans to collaborate with its educational partners to close Asia Pacific’s ICT talent gap.
Huawei has partnered with higher education institutes to train staff with the latest technologies. These institutes, in turn, offer ICT courses for students, equipping them with industry-relevant skills upon graduation.
Huawei has set up 103 ICT academies in the Asia Pacific region, and aims to train at least 200,000 ICT professionals over the next 5 years.
The company also set up a virtual AI academy in Singapore in June. The academy offers free courses on cybersecurity, cloud computing, AI and 5G to Singaporeans. Huawei’s simulation labs also give users hands-on experiences in AI development.
Huawei Mate 40 series
Huawei also announced the launch of its flagship smartphone series Mate 40 last week despite the impact of US trade sanctions on the supply of chips.
The phones are powered by the new Kirin 9000 chipsets, which are fully equipped for 5G, said Huawei. Its operating system comes with new privacy features as well - allowing users to purge sensitive data, such as location or time, before sending images.
“In these unprecedented times, we remain committed to creating a better future, with innovative technology that delivers a positive and meaningful impact on the lives of consumers. No matter how hard the times are, our commitment is to continuously innovate.” said Richard Yu, Executive Director and CEO of Huawei Consumer Business Group.
Huawei currently holds sufficient stock of chips for its telco businesses and enterprise business to overcome supply chain obstacles raised by U.S. sanctions, rotating chairman Guo Ping said in September at Huawei Connect 2020, the company’s annual industry event in China.