Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei: US tech is great, but we have to build our own

The 80-year-old CEO talks about Huawei’s struggles and his admiration for US technology in a conversation with students

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Published: 10:00pm, 31 Oct 2024Updated: 10:47pm, 31 Oct 2024

Huawei Technologies founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei said he appreciates the “openness and inclusivity” of the US tech community, and yet the Chinese company “had no choice” but to build its own tools because of US sanctions.

Ren, 80, said Huawei needs to learn from the receptive culture of the US, which has allowed the country to become highly advanced in science and technology, according to a transcript of his recent conversation with students and academics. It was published on Thursday on the website of the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), a prestigious global coding competition for university students.

“The US has set an example for all countries and companies worldwide on being open,” he said at the Huawei-sponsored event. “If [a country] is closed off, it will fall behind.”

Shenzhen-based Huawei has been barred from buying hardware, software and services from American hi-tech suppliers since May 2019, when it was added to Washington’s trade blacklist. Tightened trade restrictions imposed by the US government in 2020 further limited Huawei’s access to advanced semiconductors developed or produced using US technology, regardless of where they were manufactured.

People line up outside a Huawei store in Beijing. Photo: EPA-EFE

Since then, Huawei has transformed itself into a major force supporting China’s self-sufficiency drive, in areas ranging from artificial-intelligence (AI) chips to operating systems.