Huawei's first commercial 5G phone will debut in London on May 16

Chinese tech giant Huawei will unveil its first commercial 5G phone at an event in London on May 16.

The phone follows swiftly in the footsteps of the Huawei P30 Pro , which the company showed off at a launch event in Paris in March.

In an interview with CNET at the event, Huawei CEO Richard Yu said he expected 5G to be available first on the Mate series, which Huawei traditionally releases in September or October. Either the Mate is very early this year, or this 5G phone is an update to the P30 Pro. It could also potentially be a different phone entirely.

5G is one of the biggest mobile trends for 2019, with carriers around the world starting to roll out their next-generation mobile networks. The wireless networking technology promises more possibilities for smart homes, autonomous vehicles and standalone VR, but when it comes to phones, the technology means faster, steadier internet connections. Even though 5G networks and phones are just about here, it's very early days for the technology and for now it'll remain the preserve of early adopters.

The UK government is wrestling with whether to allow the use of Huawei networking gear in the country's 5G infrastructure, given security concerns about the company's ties to China's government.

Huawei's sister company Honor is also set to launch its latest flagship phone series in London the following week, on May 21. Honor hasn't yet said whether it will bring a 5G phone to market, although in an interview with CNET at MWC in February, CEO George Zhao said it was a priority for the company this year.

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