PARTNER FEATURE: Enterprises across a wide range of industries are advancing digital transformation efforts deeper into their operations and achieving impressive business benefits, Huawei executive Li Peng highlighted, as he pointed to the need to ensure intelligent technology is accessible to all.
During his keynote at GITEX 2024 in Dubai Peng, who serves as Huawei corporate SVP and president of ICT sales and service, said the digital economy was now evolving into the intelligent economy which he predicted would become “the main engine of global growth”.
Discussing results the vendor’s partners have achieved, he stated companies are expanding transformation efforts “deeper into production scenarios” and assessing where digital technology can provide greater value “even in traditional industries”.
Using manufacturing as an example, the executive stated using “full connectivity” and industrial IoT platforms companies were “collecting more data than ever before and paving the way for real time intelligence”.
Adoption of what he described as intelligent transformation is said to be picking-up speed with an increasing number of companies using AI to improve productivity and cut operating costs.
“This opens the door for more innovate business models and a better customer experience,” Peng added, explaining “as the global economy evolves, going digital and intelligent is the clear path forward and it is the best way to stay competitive.”
He gave the example of banks, which are using large AI models to generate complex user profiles in seconds. This information can then be used for applications such as targeted marketing and issuing credit more quickly.
The executive emphasised this “reshaping” of customer experience was driving new growth.
Overcoming challenges
Although the benefits of this intelligent transformation are compelling for industries across the spectrum, Peng indicated introducing them was “easier said than done” with different enterprises, industries and regions at different stages in their digital journeys.
In order to ease challenges faced by enterprises, Huawei has been working with partners in different countries to build up a digital talent ecosystem alongside supporting successful implementations across a range of sectors.
These include finance, utilities, transport, mining, manufacturing, oil and gas. This is in addition to aiding online businesses and public sector organisations.
“At Huawei, we combine our strengths in networking, storage, computing, cloud, and energy to build new digital and intelligent infrastructure,” he added, noting together with partners it dives deeply into the customer’s specific business scenarios to “explore the best solutions for their digital and intelligent transformation”.
The vendor has created a reference architecture as part of its All Intelligence strategy, a drive launched last year. The guide is designed to be collaborative, open, agile and trustworthy, and has already been used to develop industry-specific solutions.
Huawei has also published more than 100 case studies to aid companies in their transformation processes.
Among these examples, it has worked with the Ivory Coast’s Ministry of Transportation on a traffic analysis platform using its Intelligent Transport System. As a result of its introduction there are fewer risks on the road and traffic flow is said to have improved by more than 10 per cent.
Bringing the session back to Gitex’ host region, he added the vendor’s One Cloud, One Network solution had helped 33 countries in the Middle East and Africa build “inclusive connectivity” covering more than 1,000 government agencies. The schemed has reportedly improved both service efficiency and satisfaction.
“None of this would be possible without our partners. Their work is critical and we want to help our partners grow,” Peng added.
The company has a fast growing partner ecosystem in the enterprise market, with more than 47,000 currently on the books. This represents a jump of 18 per cent on the figure at the start of 2024.
It also has 14 OpenLabs globally, which provide facilities for joint R&D with local partners. Peng noted within the UAE it has 30 solution partners, with more than 20 specific applications developed to meet the needs of local industry.
Boosting SMEs
While larger enterprise digital transformation projects may grab the headlines, there are significant benefits to be gained by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from embracing the latest intelligent technologies.
Peng highlighted there were “many SMEs that want to go digital and intelligent too and we’re doing everything we can to help our partners serve them more independently, easily and effectively”.
The vendor offers its partners “scenario-based, lightweight solutions” together with “marketable products and efficient digital platforms”.
“We also provide support in R&D, sales, marketing, supply and services, giving our partners end-to-end business enablement,” he added.
An example cited here was work with BCX on a cloud management platform designed to serve more than 100 SMEs. The model allows companies to lease or buy network services, solving operations and maintenance challenges and cutting capex.
Peng stated the vendor was also collaborating to “boost local service capabilities,” noting ICT player Mastery House in Saudi Arabia had grown its revenue by a factor of 16 in the last eight years with joint projects with Huawei accounting for 90 per cent of revenue.
“Of course, you can’t go digital or intelligent without people who have the right knowledge and skills. So we’ve been working hard to help build local digital talent,” the expert added.
Its ICT academies, opened in partnership with universities, serve communities across the world. Among them it has trained more than 36,000 engineers and 1,000 developers in Egypt; and taught 32,000 people in Saudi Arabia ICT skills.
“Digital and intelligent transformation should not be a privilege for the few. It should be a benefit for all,” Peng said.
“Huawei is ready and willing to join forces with more customers and partners,” he added. “Together, we can do more, create more, and make the most of huge opportunities in this exciting new era”.