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McDonald’s China pushes development of native apps based on HarmonyOS, as adoption of Huawei’s mobile operating system accelerates
- McDonald’s China unit is part of the first batch of multinational food companies on the mainland that have committed to build apps based on HarmonyOS
- A developer preview version of Huawei’s new mobile operating system, HarmonyOS Next, is expected to launch in the first quarter of 2024
Iris Dengin Shenzhen
McDonald’s China unit will work with Huawei Technologies to build a native app based on the next iteration of HarmonyOS, according to the fast-food giant, as adoption of the US-sanctioned telecommunications equipment and smartphone maker’s self-developed operating system gathers momentum in its vast home market.
The Chinese arm of McDonald’s – with a network of more than 5,500 restaurants and over 200,000 employees serving more than 1 billion customers each year – is part of the first batch of multinational food companies on the mainland that have committed to develop native apps on HarmonyOS, according to a statement by the US fast-food chain on Wednesday.
HarmonyOS Next, the new version of Huawei’s mobile operating platform, will enable McDonald’s customers to order meals by accessing its applications from various devices including smartphones, tablets and smart cars, the Chicago, Illinois-based company said.
The cooperation agreement between McDonald’s China and Huawei further bolsters the Shenzhen-based tech giant’s strategy to widen the adoption of HarmonyOS as an alternative ecosystem on the mainland, as set out by company founder and chief executive Ren Zhengfei this year to counter the impact of US sanctions. HarmonyOS Next will not support Android-based apps on all Huawei devices installed with the new operating system.
McDonald’s latest initiative in China, the company’s second-largest market behind the US, comes weeks after it bought the entire 28 per cent stake held by private equity firm Carlyle Group in the unit that operates and manages the fast-food chain’s business on the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau.
After that transaction, McDonald’s ownership in its China unit increased from 20 per cent to 48 per cent. A consortium led by state-backed conglomerate Citic has a controlling stake of 52 per cent.
The cooperation with Huawei has also come at a time when McDonald’s, which is targeting 50,000 restaurants worldwide by 2027, signed a strategic partnership with Alphabet’s Google Cloud to apply generative artificial intelligence (AI) solutions across its restaurants worldwide. Google’s AI solutions, however, are not available on the mainland.
Huawei’s deal with McDonald’s China builds on the momentum that HarmonyOS has gained from a growing number of mainland Big Tech companies.
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Can Huawei's Harmony OS for smartphones compete with Google's Android and Apple's iOS?
Can Huawei's Harmony OS for smartphones compete with Google's Android and Apple's iOS?
Chinese internet firms including e-commerce giant JD.com, video gaming powerhouse NetEase and food delivery market leader Meituan last month started hiring HarmonyOS app developers to build native apps.
Alibaba Group Holding, owner of the South China Morning Post, is also developing a new version of its workplace collaboration app DingTalk that is compatible with the HarmonyOS platform.
Huawei is expected to launch a developer preview version of HarmonyOS Next in the first quarter of 2024.
China’s Big Tech firms seek HarmonyOS app builders as Huawei severs Android ties
China’s Big Tech firms seek HarmonyOS app builders as Huawei severs Android ties
More than 700 million devices currently run on HarmonyOS, with more than 2.2 million third-party developers creating apps for the platform, according to Richard Yu Chengdong, chief executive of Huawei’s consumer business group and chairman of its Intelligent Automotive Solution business unit, at the company’s annual developer conference in August.
HarmonyOS debuted as an alternative operating system for Huawei in August 2019, three months after the US government added the firm to its Entity List. Under this trade blacklist, Huawei is barred from buying software, chips and other technologies from US suppliers without Washington’s approval.
Huawei’s confidence has recently been buoyed by strong sales of its Mate 60 Pro smartphone, the company’s first 5G handset line since October 2020 and built with an advanced made-in-China processor. Huawei’s smartphone sales rose 90 per cent year on year in the first four weeks of October, according to data from Counterpoint Research.
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