Huawei's ICT powers interconnected world

Huawei aims to accelerate digital transformation across all industries by boosting innovation on new information and communications technology (known as ICT) and creating intelligent connectivity, according to senior representatives of the company.

Qiu Heng, president of Global Marketing at Enterprise Business Group of Huawei, shared a vision on Huawei’s role in digital transformation and intelligent connectivity at the CeBIT, which runs from Monday to Friday in Hannover.

As a leading global provider of ICT infrastructure and smart devices, Huawei operates in more than 170 countries and regions with more than 180,000 employees worldwide.

It is the eighth time that Huawei has been present at the world’s largest annual exhibition in this field. This year, the company showcased innovative products, solutions and successful practices together with more than 100 partners and customers.

Qiu highlighted its development of the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence and a digital platform, all of which play a crucial role in the digital transformation.

“Digitization will reshape every industry, and intelligence will have a profound impact on all enterprises in the next three decades,” Qiu said.

Digital transformation is an inevitable trend for all enterprises, and demands all technologies work closely and efficiently. Huawei’s latest IoT and AI products and solutions will help enterprises create intelligent and connectivity genes to build digital neurons and accelerate digital enterprise transformation, according to Qiu.

“The digital enterprise is like a human body. We build neurons for the whole human body in a systematic way. The digital platforms we build for the whole system are like neurons for the body. And AI and IoT solutions are the intelligent, connectivity genes in the neurons,” he explained.

From his perspective, IoT loops the physical and digital worlds, and AI makes the loop automatic and intelligent. With both IoT and AI in place, there will be high efficiency and more value for industries.

Vast investment in research and development (R&D) is core to how Huawei is able to keep capacities for technology evolution, and for fulfilling its leading role in accelerating digital transformation.

Currently, R&D spending accounts for 15 percent of the company’s total revenue.

“The total sales income of Huawei (composed of carrier, consumer and enterprise business groups) is expected to exceed $100 billion in 2018. That’s to say, our expense in R&D will amount to over $15 billion this year,” he added.

According to the EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard, Huawei’s R&D investment ranked No1 domestically and No 6 globally.

Europe is not only Huawei’s second-largest market but also the company’s innovation powerhouse. The company has set up joint research centers with local partners in Europe, such as its open labs located in Munich and Paris.

“For digital transformation, the most important is the connectivity,” Vincent Pang, president of Huawei West Europe Region, said on Monday at Huawei’s news conference.

Pang said enthusiasm for investment in better infrastructure remains low in Europe, Huawei’s local partners and customers work closely with the company for a common goal, not just to provide the best practice in the region but also for the world.

“We have changed our mission here. It’s no longer from Europe to Europe, but from Europe to the globe,” Pang said.

Huawei is making enormous efforts to push forward technological innovation, through building an open eco-system that empowers all businesses and helps the company gain recognition and trust.

So far, 197 of the Fortune Global 500 companies, including 45 of the top 100, have chosen Huawei as their digital transformation partner.

On Monday, Huawei and DU-IT, Duisburg’s municipal ICT company, jointly launched “Rhine Cloud” for future Smart City development. The project aims to digitize public service systems and facilitate modern infrastructures for the northwest German city.

“We expect Huawei to contribute cutting-edge technology to the development of the city and therefore to the better life quality for citizens,” said Martin Murrack, director of digitalization for Duisburg.

Pang said the newly released partnership is another milestone for digital transformation and in building fully-connected digital smart cities.

In addition to the debut of the Smart City digital platform, Huawei also unveiled its Smart Airport 2.0 solution and the industry’s first software-defined AI camera.

On Tuesday, the company announced the upgrade of OceanConnect IoT Platform — Internet of Vehicle (also known as IoV). Huawei’s solutions based on AI and IoT innovations are now used across sectors including finance, energy and manufacturing, with all solutions injecting intelligent connectivity genes for the industries, Qiu said.

With huge spending on R&D for innovation and understanding, integrated solutions tailor-made for customers, and an open ecosystem built for all partners, Huawei aims to bringing digital to every person, home and organization, Qiu said.

The Chinese ICT giant will unveil more breakthroughs with AI and launch their flagship digital platform at the “Huawei Connect” event in Shanghai this October. The show in Shanghai will occupy a 120,000 square meter space, dwarfing the 3000-square-meter exhibition area at CeBIT.

The latest Huawei’s Global Connectivity Index report shows intelligent connectivity will significantly drive innovation and economic growth.

By 2025, the digital economy will hit $23 trillion. Intelligent connectivity will impact how industries manage their digital transformation, as well as governments, public utilities, manufacturing, and many other sectors, the report says.