Nokia and Xiaomi Collaborate on Developing Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality
Nokia and Xiaomi have agreed to collaborate in developing more products that support virtual reality and artificial intelligence.
On July 5, Nokia and Xiaomi announced that they have ventured into a collaborative business and patent agreement for the next several years. Apart from virtual reality and augmented reality innovations, the two companies' newly-established partnership extends to other areas.
The Finnish company is now bound to provide Xiaomi with network equipment so they can work on projects related to optical transport solutions.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
Nokia and Xiaomi have also agreed to cross license their "cellular standard essential patents." The latter has also acquired several patents from Nokia.
However, according to Tech Crunch, neither Nokia nor Xiaomi specified which patents were included in the deal or how much the agreement cost.
This was also not the first time Xiaomi ventured into buying other technology giant's patents. In 2016, Xiaomi and Microsoft have also reached a cross-licensing agreement.
While companies do not normally reveal the amount of money involved in these kinds of licensing transactions, Tech Crunch pointed out that a document was previously leaked that suggested that the same type of agreement between Samsung and Microsoft cost $1 billion every year.
In Nokia's statement, the company commented on the growing success of Xiaomi's Mi Ecosystem Internet of Things platform that has reportedly gathered more than eight million connected devices on a daily basis — another area where they are expected to collaborate.
Meanwhile, for Xiaomi's part, the Chinese manufacturer's chairman and CEO, Lei Jun, said: "As a company seeking to deliver more exciting technological innovations to the world, we are excited at the opportunity to work more closely with Nokia in future."
He added: "Xiaomi is committed to building sustainable, long-term partnerships with global technology leaders. Our collaboration with Nokia will enable us to tap on its leadership in building large, high performance networks and formidable strength in software and services, as we seek to create even more remarkable products and services that deliver the best user experience to our Mi fans worldwide."
