Newsletter
Reuters reported that Huawei wants to enter the electric vehicles (EV) market and launch a vehicle under its brand. After the bans and sanctions that Donald Trump imposed on Huawei, the Chinese OEM made some changes in its business model, and it is trying to diversify its products.
According to the report, Huawei has been planning to build an electric car for a while. Huawei is under sanctions for over two years, and it had enough time to decide about entering a new market. It might even launch some models before the end of 2021, and EVs made by Huawei can target “a mass-market segment,”
Huawei is in talks with several Chinese companies to build its EV through bilateral cooperation. Changan Automobile and BAIC BluePark New Energy are likely to be Huawei’s potential partners. Although these companies refused to comment about this news, their shares rose 8 and 10 percent on the stock market after the news broke.
Changan Automobile is Ford Motor’s partner in the China market. Working with a company that is under US government sanctions may jeopardize its position as a Ford partner.
Richard Yu, who had an essential role in Huawei’s successes as the head of the smartphone business, will be responsible for driving EV plans ahead. This shows that Huawei is very serious in its plans, and it does not want to step back.
However, Huawei’s spokesman denied the plans to build an electric car under the Huawei brand. He said Huawei wants to keep its position as a technology provider.
“Huawei is not a car manufacturer. However, through ICT (information and communications technology), we aim to be a digital car-oriented and new-added components provider, enabling car OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) to build better vehicles.” Huawei’s spokesman noted.
Huawei has great potentials for the EV market
Huawei wants to maintain its operations in any way it can. Entering the EVs market is just a piece of Huawei’s puzzle for saving its business. Last week, the BBC reported that the Chinese OEM wants to start its pig farming and coal mining business operations.
This segment may seem weird for a company that is well-known for its smartphones and tech devices. But Huawei is one of the largest manufacturers of telecommunications equipment in the world.
Moreover, it has made heavy investments in developing EVs tech in recent years. Huawei has recently filed several patents related to electric vehicle technology in the Chinese Patent Office.
Of course, Huawei is not the only smartphone maker interested in the electric car market. In recent years companies such as Apple, Samsung, and Amazon have also been attracted to this market.