What Huawei’s New Phone Means for U.S. Efforts to Crimp China
Chinese tech capacity appears to be improving, calling into question the effectiveness of American export controls.
The Huawei Mate 60 Pro. Credit: 小白测评 via Weibo
When Huawei unveiled its new flagship smartphone earlier this month, Chinese consumers discovered a device that went far beyond expectations of what the sanctioned phone maker could achieve technologically. What American officials discovered, on the other hand, was a headache.
The SMIC chip inside a Huawei Mate 60 Pro smartphone. Credit:微机分WekiHome
Since 2019, the U.S. has sought to undermine China’s advances in several high-tech sectors via a litany of restrictions. Sanctions imposed in May that year were supposed to stop Huawei from accessing chips capable of 5G connectivity; while sweeping export controls announced last October 7th were designed to prevent Chinese chipmakers like Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) from getting key equipment needed to fabricate cutting-edge chips.
But the arrival of Huawei’s new phone, called the Mate 60, has challenged assumptions about China’s capabilities in the face of multilateral export contr
Exclusive longform investigative journalism, Q&As, news and analysis, and data on Chinese business elites and corporations. We publish China scoops you won't find anywhere else.
A weekly curated reading list on China from David Barboza, Pulitzer Prize-winning former Shanghai correspondent for The New York Times.
A daily roundup of China finance, business and economics headlines.
We offer discounts for groups, institutions and students. Go to our Subscriptions page for details.
A decade ago, China arrived on the global art scene with deep pockets and an abundance of swagger. Recently, however, China's economic downturn has caused a spate of museums to close and once prominent collectors to sell their collections. Can China ever achieve its dreams of "cultural self-confidence"?
The Harvard professor discusses the effects on Chinese society of the country's high-tech development, and how the pandemic may have shifted public attitudes.
The Global Intelligence Platform used by The Wire China