Huawei enters new partnership to drive increased AI adoption in China’s heavy industries

Huawei and Shenzhen-listed ZGCMC will integrate AI in heavy industries such as mining, bulk material transport and equipment manufacturing

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Huawei Technologies’ digital-transformation efforts in heavy industries reflect the company’s push to broaden its operations in the world’s second-largest economy. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 6:00pm, 17 Jul 2024

Huawei Technologies has entered into a partnership with Sichuan Zigong Conveying Machine Group Co (ZGCMC) to expand the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in heavy industries such as mining, bulk material transport and equipment manufacturing.

The three-year pact between the two firms will involve the “deep integration” of large language models – the technology underpinning generative AI services like ChatGPT – in those industries, according to a filing on Wednesday by Shenzhen-listed ZGCMC, one of China’s leading enterprises in the design, manufacture and installation of bulk material conveying machinery.

ZGCMC said it will “prioritise the use of Huawei’s product solutions and professional services within the scope of the pair’s cooperation”. Huawei will provide support in terms of programme design, global ecosystem cooperation and talent training, according to the filing, which did not provide the amount of investment involved in the partnership.

Privately-held Huawei did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

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The partnership between Huawei and ZGCMC will also cover fields such as cloud computing, big data, digital transformation and smart factories.