US to spend $1.5 billion to launch alternatives to Huawei

The federal government plans to invest $1.5 billion to help spur a standards-based alternative for the equipment at the heart of modern cellular networks. From a report: Experts say – and the government agrees – that there are economic and national security risks to such equipment being made by only a handful of companies overseas, the most affordable products from Chinese Huawei. The effort most likely to benefit from this new funding is known as ORAN (Open Radio Access Network), which uses off-the-shelf computer hardware to replace what was proprietary hardware from companies like Nokia, Ericsson and Huawei. . The federal government is launching the program with a public comment period, which will run until January 23. Funding for the effort was provided by the Flea and Science Act. The United States has largely banned the use of Huawei’s devices over security concerns amid rising US-China tensions.