In 2022, Chinese technology company Huawei saw a dramatic drop in sales as it poured more funds into research and development while dealing with US sanctions. Today, the company's founder explains how it overcame such restrictions.
Huawei Reveals How It Overcame US Sanctions
In a speech given by Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, which was covered by the South China Morning Post, it was disclosed that the company overcame US sanctions by redesigning and replacing over 13,000 components and 4,000 circuit boards over the last three years.
Sanctions placed on Huawei due to suspicions over the company's ties to the Chinese military drove this action.
Huawei has consistently refuted any accusations of spying for the Chinese government or military, calling them unfounded. In addition, the company has also filed lawsuits against the US government, questioning the legitimacy of its restrictions.
Huawei Founder's Recent Speech
In his latest speech, Ren acknowledged the public and academics who supported Huawei in finding solutions to its technology problems at the time. In addition, he disclosed that Huawei developed replacement components from domestic resources, therefore "stabilizing" the production of circuit boards.
InterestingEngineering tells us that Ren also emphasized that he was an ardent supporter of Western technology even before he founded Huawei. He asserts throughout his address that he is not "anti-West."
Nonetheless, it can be recalled that the company's conflicts with the United States significantly impacted its operations. After a series of sanctions, Huawei now concentrates on enterprise solutions, such as supporting traditional industries in digitalizing their operations. The founder added that Huawei spent $23.8 billion on R&D in 2022.
The Huawei founder also has an opinion on the AI craze sweeping the tech sector. Ren claimed that Huawei is not pursuing such technologies but that continuing AI research would eventually lead to a bigger demand for computing power, increasing demand for Huawei's goods. He also stated that more firms would be coming to claim Microsoft's lead in the relatively young industry.
Huawei's Foothold in the Tech Industry
According to Statista data, Huawei sold more than 32 million smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2020, accounting for less than 8% of the global market share. The firm has been the biggest vendor in China's smartphone market share since 2017, but it has struggled to keep up with the foreign competition.
Notwithstanding the obstacles, Huawei is well-positioned to lead the next major wave in telecoms - 5G technology. The firm has focused on developing 5G infrastructure technologies as well as 5G handsets, and it holds the most 5G patents in the world.
In China, Huawei has a significant presence in the 5G industry, producing more than 60% of 5G base stations and accounting for more than 55% of the 5G smartphone market share.
However, the worldwide backlash against Huawei has hampered its ability to sell its technology abroad, owing to its ownership structure and claimed ties to China's Communist Party.
Stay posted here at Tech Times.
