Lenovo Commits to Hiring 12,000 R&D Professionals, and Outlines Vision to Achieve Net-zero by 2050

Today, at Lenovo’s annual company kick-off to mark the start of Lenovo’s financial year, Chairman and CEO, Yuanqing Yang, set out the company’s bold vision for the year ahead. This includes building on its recent commitment to double investment in Research and Development (R&D) and announcing that the Group will hire 12,000 R&D professionals around the world over the next three years, as well as setting a vision to achieve net-zero by 2050*. The intensified commitment to innovation, underpinned by Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) commitments, comes as Lenovo continues its transformation from a devices company to a global technology powerhouse that also includes services and solutions.

Lenovo’s CEO outlined the Group’s mission for the year ahead to build new growth engines, invest in new and emerging technologies, and continue driving sustainable profitability improvements.

R&D remains a crucial priority for Lenovo in fiscal year 22/23. R&D investment will be doubled, and 12,000 new R&D professionals hired over the next three years, in addition to around 5,000 brought into the company during fiscal FY21/22, to support research across the new IT architecture of ‘Client-Edge-Cloud-Network-Intelligence’

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“Our investment plan will center around the ‘Client-Edge-Cloud-Network-Intelligence’ architecture, with a three-track approach to focus on short-, medium- and long-term payback. Our intention is to optimize between technology with quick market returns and foundational research, and between continuous improvement and breakthrough innovation.”

“My vision for Lenovo’s innovation is to become one of the world’s leading ICT companies, a pioneer and enabler of intelligent transformation,” said Chairman and CEO, Yuanqing Yang. “Our investment plan will center around the ‘Client-Edge-Cloud-Network-Intelligence’ architecture, with a three-track approach to focus on short-, medium- and long-term payback. Our intention is to optimize between technology with quick market returns and foundational research, and between continuous improvement and breakthrough innovation.”

R&D efforts will focus around the new and emerging IT architecture. Teams will work on new product and business model innovation, incubating technologies from edge computing to technology which will help businesses capitalize on the metaverse, and emerging and disruptive innovation like next-generation AI and heterogeneous computing to help them prepare for the future. All with the intention of helping businesses of all sizes capitalize on new and emerging technologies like the metaverse.

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Alongside its R&D commitments, Lenovo outlined its vision to become net-zero by 2050, and Lenovo is working with the Science Based Target Initiative to establish goals that support this vision. The company has been reporting on its ESG commitments for the past 14 years, including outlining its work and goals around climate change mitigation, the circular economy, and sustainable materials. In 2020, Lenovo exceeded its 2020 emission reduction goals a year ahead of schedule and has already established science-based targets for 2030

In addition to the net-zero vision, Yuanqing Yang further committed to positively impacting 15 million lives through philanthropic programs and partnerships by 2025. The company’s philanthropic mission provides smarter technology for all by empowering underrepresented communities with access to technology and STEM education.

Yuanqing Yang concluded: “Lenovo is much more than business growth and financial success. We are innovators who are committed to helping solve humanity’s greatest challenges. Smarter powers what’s next.”