OnePlus CEO Pete Lau today penned a post in the company’s forums titled “A New Journey for OnePlus”, announcing that OnePlus will further integrate its organization with that of OPPO. This comes less than a year after Lau took over a senior leadership role at OPPO and the two companies began sharing more resources to cut costs.
The CEO says that the changes brought about last year have seen a “positive impact” which is why both the firms will “further integrate” their operations, adding that the changes will help “create even better products” for its customers, thanks to the added “resources at hand”. Interestingly, Lau suggests that the company will be able to also become more efficient and offer “faster and more stable software updates for OnePlus users”. It is not clear what this exactly means and if there will be a crossover between ColorOS and OxygenOS, allowing for faster development and testing.
The integration does not mean that the firms are merging into one, as Lau reiterates that OnePlus will continue to operate as an independent brand, launching products and holding events under the OnePlus brand. Additionally, it is not clear what else is changing and what the outcome of the tighter integration.
With OnePlus continuing to expand its portfolio, including in the lower-end of the smartphone market, it might not be surprising to see the firm reuse OPPO’s designs. Since both companies – along with Realme, Vivo, and iQOO – are brands under BBK electronics and already share resources for R&D, it is anybody’s guess what special changes will come with the deeper integration.