Huawei and Qualcomm reset 5G patent relationship with major cross-license deal

Huawei and Qualcomm have agreed to a broad, multi-year patent licensing deal covering 5G, computing, artificial intelligence, and networking technologies, in a significant development for the global standard-essential patent (SEP) licensing landscape.

The agreement includes cross-licenses to the companies’ patent portfolios across those technology fields, as well as Qualcomm’s purchase of certain Huawei US patents covering compute, AI, networking, and other technologies.

The transaction remains subject to the necessary regulatory approvals. The companies have not disclosed its financial terms. Most significantly from a telecommunications patent perspective, Huawei said the agreement is its first patent licensing agreement with Qualcomm covering 5G technologies.

Huawei also said the deal is the first agreement under which it licenses and assigns patents in compute, AI, and networking technologies to Qualcomm. Both companies have framed the agreement around licensing practices consistent with fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) principles, placing the deal firmly within the wider global debate over the licensing of SEPs underpinning communications standards.

A significant 5G licensing relationship

The agreement marks a notable development in the patent relationship between two major holders of telecommunications technology. Qualcomm says its 5G licensing program now covers more than 200 licensing agreements, while its broader licensing program encompasses more than 300 agreements covering more than 23 billion devices. Its portfolio includes cellular SEPs covering 3G, 4G, and 5G technologies, alongside patents in areas including processing, video compression, imaging, computer vision, audio, Wi-Fi, and AI.

Huawei also has an extensive global patent portfolio. The company says that, at the end of 2025, it held more than 165,000 active patents worldwide, including more than 30,000 granted US patents. It says it has entered into more than 260 patent licensing agreements with major ICT companies across the US, Europe, Japan, and South Korea.

The new agreement is therefore significant not simply because it involves two major technology companies, but because it brings Huawei and Qualcomm into a new 5G licensing arrangement covering their respective patent portfolios.

Huawei said its first intellectual-property licensing payment was made to Qualcomm in 2001, while its first IP licensing revenue was received from Motorola in 2011.

Huawei’s growing patent licensing business

The agreement also underlines Huawei’s increasingly important patent licensing business. Huawei said the expected contract value of its patent licensing agreements will exceed $6.9 billion following the Qualcomm deal. The figure should not be confused with the value of the Qualcomm transaction itself, which the companies have not disclosed.

Huawei says its IP licensing business has generated positive revenue since 2021. The company has continued to invest heavily in research and development: its 2025 R&D spending reached CNY 192.3 billion, representing 21.8% of revenue, while cumulative R&D investment over the preceding decade exceeded CNY 1.38 trillion.

The Qualcomm agreement follows Huawei’s patent licensing agreement with HP, announced in August, covering patents used in Wi-Fi technology.

AI and computing broaden the deal

Although the 5G element is likely to be of particular interest to the SEP community, the agreement extends beyond cellular communications. The cross-licenses cover compute, AI, and networking, while Qualcomm will acquire selected Huawei US patents in those areas and others.

That combination reflects the increasingly interconnected nature of communications, computing and AI technologies. It also means the transaction combines cross-licensing of patent portfolios with the transfer of ownership of specific patents. The companies have not identified the individual US patents being acquired or disclosed the financial terms of the transaction.

FRAND principles

The companies have specifically described the agreement as reflecting their shared commitment to intellectual-property rights and to licensing practices consistent with FRAND principles.

FRAND licensing remains one of the central issues in SEP disputes worldwide, with questions surrounding royalty rates, portfolio valuation, licensing obligations, and the balance between patent holders and implementers continuing to generate litigation and policy debate.

The Huawei-Qualcomm agreement does not disclose the commercial terms on which the parties have settled their licensing relationship. Nevertheless, its explicit reference to FRAND principles provides an indication of the framework within which the companies say the agreement has been reached.

Huawei Chief Intellectual Property Officer Alan Fan said the agreement recognized both Huawei’s contributions to 4G and 5G standards and Qualcomm’s foundational contributions to modern communications technologies.

John Han, Qualcomm’s executive vice president and general manager of Qualcomm Technology Licensing, said the agreement reaffirmed recognition of Qualcomm’s 5G technology leadership and the success of its 5G SEP licensing program, while also reflecting Qualcomm’s recognition of Huawei’s continuing innovation and IP in 5G and other fields. The transaction will close following receipt of the necessary regulatory approvals.

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