Huawei to respond to latest US curbs with update on Android replacement

SHENZHEN, China (Reuters) – Huawei Technologies is expected to respond on Thursday to the latest salvo of US technology restrictions against it and share its progress on developing a system that is seen as its best bet to replace Google’s Android mobile operating system. Huawei will also reveal its progress in developing its proprietary Harmony operating system, which it has billed as an multi-device platform across watches, laptops and mobiles, rather than as a like-for-like challenger to Google’s Android mobile operating system. Huawei’s addition to the US entity list in May last year barred Google from providing technical support for new Huawei phone models using Android, and from Google Mobile Services (GMS), the bundle of developer services upon which most Android apps are based. A key challenge for Huawei is to show that its proprietary AppGallery and Huawei Mobile Services can integrate local apps from different countries and regions, said Tarun Pathak, an industry analyst with Counterpoint. “The lack of Google services seriously impacts these devices’ appeal against competitors running a full commercial version of Android,” he said.