Leica joins forces with Xiaomi for new smartphone after partnership with Huawei ends
- The new strategic cooperation will see Leica and Xiaomi jointly develop an “imaging flagship smartphone”, slated to be launched in July
- The break-up with Leica has dealt another blow to Huawei’s dwindling smartphone business, which had thrived at home and abroad
German camera maker Leica is teaming up with Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi after ending a seven-year partnership with Huawei Technologies Co, whose handset business has been hamstrung by US sanctions.
The new strategic cooperation will see Leica and Xiaomi jointly develop an “imaging flagship smartphone”, slated to be launched in July, according to an announcement on Monday.
“This cooperation will provide a strong boost to Xiaomi’s imaging strategy,” said Lei Jun, Xiaomi’s founder, chairman and chief executive.
“The two companies highly appreciate the partnership,” a Huawei representative said via email. “Huawei is grateful to its global consumers for their support and will continue to provide them with the ultimate mobile photography experiences through its continued pursuit of innovation.”
The break-up with Leica has dealt another blow to Huawei’s dwindling smartphone business, which had thrived at home and abroad thanks partly to the German brand’s high-end image and leading camera technologies.
Huawei’s once lucrative smartphone business has been suffering since the US put the Chinese company on its trade blacklist on national security grounds, barring it from accessing components that use core American technologies.