Lenovo seeks partnerships with multiple AI model developers to expand its global ambitions

Lenovo is pursuing partnerships with multiple large language model developers around the world as it seeks to strengthen its position as a global artificial intelligence player, according to the company’s chief financial officer. Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Lenovo CFO Winston Cheng said the strategy reflects the company’s belief that no single AI model will suit all markets or regulatory environments.

The world’s largest personal computer maker is aiming to embed AI capabilities across its entire product portfolio, including PCs, smartphones and wearable devices. Earlier in January, Lenovo introduced Qira, a built-in cross-device intelligence system designed to work with different AI model partners rather than relying on a single proprietary system. The platform is intended to enable Lenovo devices to interact more seamlessly while leveraging the strengths of various external AI providers.

Cheng highlighted Lenovo’s unique position in the global technology market, noting its strong presence across both personal computers and mobile devices. “We are the only company besides Apple with significant market share across both PCs and mobiles, and in the open Android and Windows ecosystems,” he told Reuters. This broad footprint, he said, allows Lenovo to act as an intermediary that brings together different AI technologies on widely used platforms.

Unlike Apple, which currently works with a limited number of AI partners, Lenovo is deliberately taking a more open approach. The company believes this flexibility will allow it to respond more effectively to regional regulations and customer preferences, while also reducing dependence on any single technology provider.

Global partnerships reflect regulatory and regional realities

Lenovo’s strategy involves working with AI developers from multiple regions, including the Middle East, Europe and China. Cheng said potential partners include Humain in Saudi Arabia, Mistral AI in Europe, and Chinese companies such as Alibaba and DeepSeek. These discussions underscore Lenovo’s intention to tailor its AI offerings to different markets rather than pursue a one-size-fits-all approach.

“We’re taking an orchestrator approach,” Cheng said. “We’re not doing our own LLM. We’re really doing a partnership because there are regulations around the world.” By avoiding the development of its own large language model, Lenovo hopes to navigate complex, often conflicting regulatory frameworks more smoothly while still delivering advanced AI features to users.

Cheng, who joined Lenovo in 2024 after a career as a technology investment banker and became CFO in April 2025, suggested that this partnership-led model also makes commercial sense. Developing and maintaining a large language model requires significant investment and ongoing operational costs, which can weigh heavily on profitability. By contrast, working with multiple partners allows Lenovo to focus on integrating AI into its hardware and software ecosystems.

The approach also reflects growing fragmentation in the global technology landscape, where data sovereignty rules and national AI strategies are increasingly shaping how companies deploy new technologies. Lenovo’s willingness to collaborate with regional players could help it gain access to markets that might otherwise be difficult to serve using a single, globally deployed AI system.

Costs, valuations and data centre ambitions

Beyond AI partnerships, Cheng also addressed broader challenges facing the technology industry, including rising component costs. He said surging memory chip prices are increasing production costs for consumer electronics makers worldwide, and Lenovo plans to pass these increases on to customers. This could put pressure on demand at a time when many consumers are already cautious about spending on new devices.

Cheng also warned of what he described as an AI bubble in both private and public equity markets. While investment in AI continues to surge, he said investors should pay closer attention to operating costs and capital expenditures. According to Cheng, the long-term sustainability of AI-focused businesses will depend not just on innovation, but on their ability to manage ongoing expenses such as energy use, data processing and talent acquisition.

Lenovo’s ambitions extend beyond consumer devices into enterprise infrastructure. The company, which also manufactures servers, announced in January a partnership with US AI chipmaker Nvidia to help AI cloud providers bring data centres online more quickly. The collaboration centres on a liquid-cooled hybrid AI infrastructure designed to improve efficiency and reduce deployment times.

Cheng said the two companies are focusing on the “global deployment” of this capability, with an emphasis on local manufacturing. He added that Lenovo and Nvidia may consider launching the solution in regions such as Asia or the Middle East, where demand for AI-ready data centres is growing rapidly.

As Lenovo balances consumer devices, enterprise infrastructure, and a complex web of AI partnerships, the company is positioning itself as a flexible enabler rather than a closed-ecosystem provider. Whether this orchestrator model can deliver sustained competitive advantage will depend on how effectively Lenovo manages its partnerships, controls costs, and adapts to rapidly changing regulatory and market conditions.