ZCZC
BCN-25
CHINA-US-TELECOM-HUAWEI-TRADE
Huawei eyes computer market as US squeezes telecom business
SHANGHAI, Sept 18, 2019 (AFP) – Huawei will step up its presence in the
global market for computer hardware, a top company official said on
Wednesday, as the Chinese telecom giant weathers a US assault on its 5G
network and smartphone business.
Deputy chairman Ken Hu said the strategy is based on expectations that
“incredible computing power” is going to be needed as the world turns to
complicated and resource-hogging future technologies such as artificial
intelligence and autonomous vehicles.
“We have a lot of challenges ahead of us. We need to beef up our computing
power, explore new architectures, and develop processors that meet people’s
needs across all scenarios,” Hu said at a tech conference in Shanghai.
Huawei is already the world leader in telecom networking equipment, the
number two smartphone producer, and is expected to dominate in ultra-fast
future 5G networks.
But it has been swept into the trade war between China and the United
States, with its future prospects now in doubt owing to a US campaign to
isolate the company.
Washington says Huawei equipment could contain security loopholes that
allow China to spy on global communications traffic.
The United States has provided no proof and Huawei denies the charge.
A push into the market for computer architecture and software could add a
new front in Huawei’s battle with the Trump administration.
Hu cited independent estimates saying the market will be worth more than $2
trillion by 2023, adding that Huawei would invest an additional $1.5 billion
toward that effort.
He gave no timeframe or figures on current investment.
“We will continue to invest,” he said. “Starting with the most difficult
challenge ahead of us — making breakthroughs in architecture — to
developing processors, we’re going to help expand the industry and build out
the ecosystem.”
The United States is pressing allies, with mixed success, to reject
Huawei’s 5G technology and has threatened to cut it off from US components
and services that it needs, such as the Android operating system that runs
its phones.
In August the US Commerce Department effectively suspended those sanctions
for a second time, but the possibility of future implementation has placed a
cloud of uncertainty over Huawei.
BSS/AFP/HR/1425