Huawei upgrades OpenLab innovation centre in Singapore

Chinese tech giant Huawei has recently upgraded its OpenLab innovation facility in Singapore to drive the development of industry specific applications such as smart classrooms and horizontal capabilities like artificial intelligence (AI) powered video analytics.

Dubbed OpenLab 3.0, the upgraded facility, located at Huawei’s office in Singapore’s Changi Business Park, is home to four new labs that are powered by the company’s network, storage, optical, wireless infrastructure, as well as its capabilities in cloud computing and AI.

The upgrades, which come at a cost of $20m, will enable Huawei and its partners such as Chinasoft, an IT service provider, and Maxxmedia, a supplier of technology and media services, to accelerate the digitalisation of industries.

Foo Fang Yong, CEO of Huawei International, noted that while “OpenLab 1.0 to 2.0 is looking at tomorrow from today’s perspective, OpenLab 3.0 is about cooperating with our partners…and exploring future possibilities through our innovative R&D capabilities and investment”.

Huawei’s OpenLab was first launched in Singapore in 2016. Since then, the facility has drawn over 6,000 industry visitors from the Asia-Pacific region and forged collaborations with over 100 partners to create customer-centric solutions. The company also has similar facilities in Suzhou, Munich, Istanbul, Dubai and other cities.

OpenLab is part of Huawei’s efforts to push deeper into the enterprise, pitting itself against the likes of Dell Technologies and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, among others. It has also set up a new cloud region in Singapore in 2019 to serve the needs of local firms and Chinese enterprises operating in the city-state.

In 2022, Huawei’s enterprise revenues grew 30% year-on-year to reach RMB133.2bn (US$19.4bn).