When Leica announced close
cooperation with Huawei last year, many questioned if this made sense. Many felt that cooperation with Apple would
have been more successful. Since then Leica
has entered an even closer relationship with Huawei.
They have expanded their
strategic collaboration with the establishment of a jointly operated research
and innovation center, the ‘Max Berek Innovation Lab’. The launch came only
seven months after the public announcement of their long-term technology
partnership in the field of optical engineering, and five months after the
launch of the globally successful, multiple-award winning HUAWEI P9 and P9 Plus
smartphones.
The new lab, located at
Leica’s global HQ in Wetzlar, Germany, will drive further development of
optical systems and software-based technologies to improve imaging quality in a
wide range of photographic and mobile device applications. Additional outcomes will
include the creation of computational imaging, augmented reality (AR) and
virtual reality (VR) solutions. In addition to R&D resources from both
companies, Huawei and Leica plan to collaborate with German and international
universities and research institutions.
Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, majority
shareholder and chairman
of the advisory board of Leica
Camera AG (left) and
Ren Zhengfei, CEO of Huawei
(right)
The lab’s establishment is the result of the vision
and support of Ren Zhengfei, CEO of
Huawei and Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, majority shareholder and chairman of the
advisory board of Leica Camera AG.
The questioning of the
value of this relationship to quite a degree appears to be the result of a lack
of knowledge about Huawei. They are far
from being a “me too” manufacturer. To
the contrary, last year, Huawei reached third place on the list of the world's
largest smartphone providers, with 139 million mobile phones sold. The industry
is currently led by the South Korean electronics giant Samsung with Apple in
second place. Huawei was behind Apple in third place but in front of other
competitors like Oppo, Xiaomi and Lenovo.
Huawei is certain that in the foreseeable future, they will move up to
second place.
Huawei Mate 9
The success of Huawei is
due, among other things, to the efforts in research and development. Over the past ten years, Huawei has spent over
$ 38 billion on that segment of its business alone.
In his speech at the current
CES show in Las Vegas, Ren Zhengfei, CEO of Huawei emphasized the contribution
of companies from Germany to the common business success. Huawei uses camera
modules and lenses developed by Leica for its top smartphones. A special series
of the Huawei Mate 9 was designed by Porsche Design, and in the newly networked
cars from Audi, Huawei's wireless modules will provide connectivity in the 4G
and 4.5G networks.
In view of the rapid
growth of the cell phone industry in general, the fact that no other major
camera and lens manufacturer has currently any connection to this market, and
considering the rapid growth of Huawei, it emphasizes the far sightedness of
Leica to be engaged in this ever growing industry.
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