Huawei, HP Sign Global Patent Licensing Deal
Huawei and HP Inc. have signed a multi-year global patent cross-licensing agreement covering wireless technologies, including Huawei’s Wi-Fi patents. The agreement gives HP access to certain Huawei patents, while Huawei receives reciprocal rights to certain HP patents. Neither company disclosed the financial terms or the full scope of HP’s patents covered by the arrangement.
The agreement follows a patent dispute between the companies. In August 2025, Huawei filed proceedings against HP in Europe over alleged use of a Wi-Fi 6 patent. Subsequently, HP joined the Sisvel Wi-Fi 6 patent pool in November 2025, helping resolve related disputes.
Wi-Fi Patents at the Center
The new agreement covers certain Huawei Wi-Fi patents, including technology associated with Wi-Fi 7. Wi-Fi standards rely on contributions from companies across the technology industry. Therefore, standard-essential patents can play an important role in ensuring that connected products work with established wireless standards.
Huawei said the agreement reflects its investment in communications technology research and intellectual property. Alan Fan, Huawei’s Chief Intellectual Property Officer, stated, “Huawei is pleased to reach this patent cross-licensing agreement with HP Inc. This agreement is a strong testament to Huawei’s persistent independent innovation in cutting-edge fields in Information and Communications Technology (ICT). Through patent licensing, Huawei shares its innovation with the industry, particularly in the area of standardized technologies, which brings leading technological experiences to consumers worldwide.”
Meanwhile, HP has stressed that the arrangement should not be interpreted as a broader business partnership. The company said Huawei is not an HP supplier, and HP is not incorporating Huawei components or technology into its products.
Patent Licensing Shapes Technology Access
The distinction matters because patent licensing agreements can provide manufacturers with legal access to technologies required for standards-compliant products. At the same time, such agreements do not necessarily establish commercial cooperation between the companies involved.
Huawei has increasingly expanded its patent licensing activities as it seeks to recoup returns on its research and development investments. The company says its wireless innovations have reached more than 1.6 billion consumer electronic devices, excluding mobile phones, by the end of 2025.
Furthermore, Wi-Fi 7 represents an important stage in the development of wireless connectivity. The standard targets higher throughput, lower latency and greater reliability for applications such as cloud computing, gaming, video conferencing and extended reality.
Consequently, the Huawei-HP agreement highlights the growing commercial importance of intellectual property surrounding global connectivity standards. However, both companies continue to position the arrangement primarily as a patent-licensing matter rather than as a strategic or operational alliance.
