Huawei and Qualcomm Reach Broad Patent Licensing Deal

 According to an announcement made on October 5, 2026, in Shenzhen, China, and San Diego, United States, Huawei and Qualcomm have reached a broad, multi-year patent licensing agreement covering several key technology areas, including 5G, computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and networking.

The agreement includes cross-licensing of patent portfolios held by both companies across these technology fields. It also covers Qualcomm's acquisition of certain Huawei U.S. patents related to computing, AI, networking, and other technologies. The transaction is subject to the necessary regulatory approvals before completion.

Both companies stated that the agreement reflects their shared commitment to intellectual property protection and patent licensing under the principles of fairness, reasonableness, and non-discrimination (FRAND). These principles play an important role in licensing patents essential to industry standards, including those supporting modern wireless communications.

John Han, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Qualcomm's Technology Licensing business, said that Qualcomm's continued investment in foundational wireless technology research has helped advance successive generations of mobile communications and earned broad recognition across the global wireless industry. He added that the agreement reaffirms the strength of Qualcomm's 5G technology and the success of its 5G standard-essential patent (SEP) licensing program, while recognizing Huawei's continued innovation and intellectual property contributions in 5G and other technology areas.

Fan Zhiyong, Huawei's Chief Intellectual Property Officer, emphasized the company's decades-long investment in fundamental research and its role in advancing mobile communications and other technologies. He highlighted Huawei's contributions to 4G and 5G standards, including polar coding technology for signal transmission that approaches the theoretical limits of communication performance. According to Fan, these innovations have helped strengthen Huawei's position in the mobile communications industry and influenced how people communicate and live.

The agreement highlights the importance of intellectual property licensing and technological innovation in the global semiconductor and telecommunications industries. As 5G, AI computing, and networking technologies continue to evolve, cooperation on patent licensing remains an important mechanism for supporting technology development and the implementation of industry standards.