Huawei and HP have signed a multi-year agreement to mutually use patents. The deal includes, among other things, technology for Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7. The agreement follows a patent dispute that led to a lawsuit just last year.
Under the cross-license, HP gains access to a broader portfolio of Wi-Fi patents held by Huawei. Conversely, Huawei is permitted to use technology patented by HP. The companies have not disclosed which HP patents are covered by the agreement or the deal’s financial terms.
HP emphasized to Reuters that the agreement should not be interpreted as signaling broader cooperation with Huawei. According to the U.S. company, this is a standard license for standard-essential patents (SEPs). Such patents are necessary for products to function according to a technical standard and are therefore licensed to other manufacturers.
From lawsuit to license
The agreement comes about a year after Huawei filed a lawsuit against HP with the Unified Patent Court in Europe. Huawei alleged that HP was using a Wi-Fi 6 patent without permission.
In November 2025, HP subsequently joined Sisvel’s Wi-Fi 6 patent pool. This gave the company access, through a single license, to approximately 2,000 patents necessary to implement Wi-Fi 6. Legal proceedings brought by Huawei and Philips against HP were subsequently terminated.
The bilateral agreement now reached goes further. According to Huawei, it covers a broader selection of its Wi-Fi patents, including intellectual property related to Wi-Fi 7.
Patents remain important for Huawei
Huawei has expanded its patent licensing activities in recent years. The Chinese company claims to be one of the leading holders of patents necessary for Wi-Fi 6. Huawei charges a fee of $0.50 per consumer device to use its Wi-Fi 6 technology. By the end of 2025, excluding smartphones, more than 1.6 billion devices are expected to use the company’s Wi-Fi inventions.
These patent activities are largely unrelated to the U.S. trade restrictions in place against Huawei since 2019. Among other things, those measures restrict access to U.S. technology and advanced chips, but do not automatically prevent the granting of patent licenses.
According to Alan Fan, Huawei’s Chief Intellectual Property Officer, the agreement with HP is part of the company’s strategy to make technology that Huawei develops for international standards available to other manufacturers through licensing.