LIVE FROM HUAWEI GLOBAL ANALYST SUMMIT: Huawei CFO and deputy chair Sabrina Meng (pictured) used her first presentation as rotating chair to highlight the huge upside of digital transformation and called for continued cooperation across value chains, but warned disruptions to resource supplies could impact innovation and economic growth.

In a keynote, Meng explained the digital economy is growing into a key driving force behind the reorganisation of resources, the restructuring of the global economy and the changing competitive landscape.

“The principles we have come to know and trust are being disrupted or revised, which will have a direct impact on industrial innovation and economic development.”

Industries are working to redefine productivity, supported by data analytics, and bringing fresh vitality in this new digital era, she suggested. “The time is right to thrive with digital. Digital technology is redefining productivity and driving a shift from quantity to quality, gradually becoming the key for social economic development.”

Huawei estimated that by 2025, around 55 per cent of global economic growth will be driven by the digital sector.

Meng cautioned the digital shift is an opportunity and a challenge for the industry, insisting any successful transformation must be driven by strategy, not technology.

Since data creates value only when it flows across an organisation, she said methodical governance is vital.

Meng explained Huawei aims to provide customers with digital infrastructure with “the simplest possible architecture, the highest possible quality that delivers the best possible experience at the lowest possible costs”.

She closed by noting Huawei is strengthening cooperation with industry organisations, opening up hardware for integration and making software open source, which brings more partners and developers into the fold and drives joint innovation.