Huawei has reached a new milestone with the launch of the Pura 70 series, which sources 90% of its smartphone components from Chinese suppliers. While U.S. export controls prohibit foreign companies from shipping parts to the company for use in various products, Huawei has insisted on cutting off access to foreign manufacturers and relying on companies local to do the work. Progress so far has been impressive, and only a few pieces remain to completely eliminate reliance on supply chain partners outside of China.
The Pura 70 Ultra is the exception, but the cheaper models feature parts from Chinese suppliers.
A teardown and review of the Pura 70, Pura 70 Pro and Pura 70 Pro+ was carried out by Japanese investigative company Formalhaut Techno Solution, with Huawei Central reporting that 90% of the components are owned by Chinese companies. However, the Pura 70 Ultra, which is Huawei’s top-of-the-line model, remains the exception, probably due to the fact that foreign suppliers have better technology than local suppliers, leaving the smartphone maker with little choice.
The Chinese manufacturers responsible for the necessary components are OFILM, HNLens Technology, Goertek, Sunny Optical, BOE, Goodix Technology and Crystal Optoelectronics. Perhaps the most complex component to mass produce is the chipset, and various industry insiders have noted that it’s nothing short of a miracle that Huawei has found its way into the silicon department. Keep in mind that the trade ban meant that TSMC and Samsung could not mass produce Huawei’s chipset designs.
Fortunately, the company persevered and relied on SMIC, China’s largest semiconductor company, to mass produce the Kirin 9010, the direct successor to the Kirin 9000S found in the Mate 60 series. However, Huawei used the same 7nm process for the Kirin 9010 as for the Kirin 9000S, suggesting that the move to the 5nm node could happen when the Mate 70 family is announced in October this year.
It appears that US export controls have done little to curb Huawei’s resurgence, and have only strengthened the former Chinese giant’s determination to shed its foreign suppliers. Although the move will likely mean that Huawei will remain limited to China, its competitors will indeed feel the heat in the weeks to come.
