The periwinkle is a low-level animal that adds only marginal value to the normal state. But when you scratch its surface, he will release a precious stone, the cryolite. Huawei’s success in overcoming numerous Western sanctions, including sanctions against Cadence (the world’s leading computer-aided design tool for manufacturing advanced integrated circuits), sanctions against ASML (the world’s leading chip maker, including for advanced lithography), sanctions on operating systems (Google Designkits Android), sanctions on 5G module (5G modules from Qualcumm), sanctions on smart chips (GPU chips from Nvidia), sanctions on advanced converters (my old employer, Analog Devices, is not allowed to ship its most advanced converters), etc., is a story of corporate and national resilience.
In the 1880s, as the United States undermined the economy of the United Kingdom, then the world’s largest economy, the United States used many technological innovations to move away from any obstacles brought by Britain . History is about to repeat itself as Huawei has shown that it has an internal mechanism that allows it to develop some of the most advanced technologies in the world.
If Huawei actually made these things (it’s possible they stockpiled some before the sanctions), and revealed that they actually created them (event scheduled for September 25), a new dimension would be added to the global economy. Quite simply, sanctions fail most of the time! The other day the New York Times concluded that sanctions against Russia have also failed as it is making more missiles and new species of drones than it had in February 2022.
Background
The US government placed Huawei on its trade blacklist in 2019 for national security reasons. The sanctions impacted Huawei’s business globally, and its revenue fell by nearly a third in 2021. The Trump administration began restricting semiconductor sales to Huawei in 2019. The Biden administration has expanded these controls, reducing Huawei’s access to U.S. consumers and suppliers.
The initial US moves targeting Huawei were driven by concerns that the tech giant could use its presence in global telecommunications networks to spy on the Chinese government.
The sanctions require U.S. suppliers to obtain a special license to ship goods to Huawei. Restrictions were further tightened in 2020.
The Mate 60 Pro
Huawei’s latest smartphone, theMate 60 Pro, allegedly built largely on Chinese components, brought a new basis for competition in the smartphone game, including a satellite feature that showcases the form factor, weight, usability, size and other elements of base that we see in most modern land-based smartphones. This could indicate that Huawei has found a solution to the US microchip embargo and blockade. You will read about this Huawei experience in many books on business resilience.
Indeed, Huawei knew that without innovation, it would have failed. And he turned to innovation and can now live in the future. Call it Huawei’s periwinkle evolution.
Comment on the feed
Comment 1: We don’t yet know if the technologies powering Huawei’s latest smartphone are all developed in-house. But this is only a small part of the larger message, the big part? We Africans always learn the wrong lessons from this kind of history. We will spend time wondering whether the United States is superior to China or whether Huawei is superior to Apple. These points are useless when it comes to important things.
The key message is that after sanctions from the United States and others, Huawei and the Chinese got to work, they did not migrate to Western countries or transfer Huawei to the United States. This is the most important message for every African, otherwise continue to sweat and discuss useless things.
When your back is against the wall and there is bad governance on a large scale, what do you do? Answer for yourselves!
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We want to be the first continent to develop remotely, the greatest of illusions, it has never happened and it will never be the case.
We even relocate startups just to get funding…
My answer: In fact, it’s important that it’s local. For what? If they stockpiled chips that could last them the next 5 years (not sure if this would be possible as these will become out of date), the extent of their rise would be calibrated. But if they open the veil and everything is local, that’s another level.
Concerning Africans who go abroad, it is a legitimate debate. But I don’t blame anyone who does it. The real deal is what the home nations do with those at home since they have forgotten those abroad. When I was at Johns Hopkins, most countries knew that their citizens were getting their doctorates at the school; Nigeria didn’t even know I existed. And upon graduation, most were invited to return home. From Singapore to Brazil, the paths were clear. Where renewing my regular Nigerian passport is a real headache, how do you make this decision?
Comment 2: I am happy for Huawei and China but sad for Africa. The Chinese have taken up the challenge of US tariffs and sanctions and are gradually achieving astonishing results. Unfortunately, Africans systematically refuse to take responsibility for each of these challenges. Educated African elites will flee to Western countries due to lack of electricity, insecurity, unemployment and all sorts of reasons, instead of meeting these challenges head on.
In the same vein, African leaders will continue to run from the Africa-France summit to the Africa-China summit, to the Africa-Russia summit and the Africa-US summit, looking for solutions under development instead of confronting the demons of underdevelopment.
The lesson I would like us to learn from the Huawei debacle is that no one has a monopoly on wisdom. None of the challenges we face in Africa are beyond our reach. But that is if and only if we take responsibility and address these challenges head on.
Are we ready or will we run away, as usual?
Apple iPhone 15 is having a moment
Apple continues to prosper: “Apple’s bet on high-end phones seems to be paying off. While pre-orders for the iPhone 15 began on Friday, demand has pushed back expected delivery dates for the Pro and Pro Max models into October and November, Bloomberg reports. The rush of orders suggests customers are still willing to pay top dollar for the latest features, underscoring Apple’s strategy of saving its biggest updates for the Pro and Pro Max. Smartphone sales have stagnated around the world, which has also pushed companies to rely on price increases: The Pro Max starts at $1,199, which is $100 more than last year. Apple announced Friday that it would offer a software update for the iPhone 12 in France after tests revealed radiation levels above acceptable. Apple says the results come from a “specific testing protocol used by French regulators” and that the phones removed from shelves are safe.
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
Ndubuisi Ekekwe, PhD, Chairman of FASMICRO Group, is the Principal Professor of the Tekedia Mini-MBA. He writes regularly for the Harvard Business Review. E-mail: [email protected].
