Tech Brief: LG Officially Exits Smartphone Business

South Korean electronics giant LG on Monday confirmed it's pulling out of smartphone business on July 31, joining the list of high-profile companies like Nokia and BlackBerry that have given up on developing smartphones in recent years. "LG's strategic decision to exit the incredibly competitive mobile phone sector will enable the company to focus resources in growth areas such as electric vehicle components, connected devices, smart homes, robotics, artificial intelligence and business-to-business solutions, as well as platforms and services," the company said in a statement. The writing had been on the wall for LG, which has posted more than 5 trillion won (US$ 4.4 billion) of operating losses over the last six years in the face of rising competition from other brands like Huawei, Xiaomi, and OnePlus, which have steadily chipped away at what remained of its market share. "Moving forward, LG will continue to leverage its mobile expertise and develop mobility-related technologies such as 6G to help further strengthen competitiveness in other business areas," the company said.